The Beastmaster and The Wizards
by YueTian
Summary: Raina's dream is to be a wizardess and bring bright smiles to the world with her beast taming whistle! Yet, she's terrible at magic and her parents are at their wit's end. Without much choice, they decide to send her to Mills Crea, the best magic school the world has to offer. However, what she finds there is not all like anything her parents had told her. This is her story...
1. Chapter 1: Not An Innocent?

****Disclaimer****

**All the ideas and familiar character names are from the two games: The Wand of Fortune (I, II, & IIFD) and The Beastmaster and The Princess. I do not own any of their work!**

****SPOILER ALERT****

**There are also some lines and events that came from their games!**

**Without further ado, thank you for taking these into consideration and I hope you enjoy my story!**

* * *

Not An Innocent?

If she could rewind time, it'd be to that day. That day when she woke up to the call of her mother calling her to come down for breakfast and have a fun meal with her family. She was fifteen when it happened.

"A letter?" she asked with a look of confusion.

Her mother smiled, "That's right. From some good friends of mom and dad."

"Good friends from mom and dad?" she tilted her head just as her spoonful of rice dropped onto the wooden table, "O-Oh!"

Her dad got up and wiped away the rice with a napkin from the other side of the table.

"Th-Thanks, dad…" She forced a small smile despite the feeling of embarrassment.

"You're welcome." He replied.

Her mom wore a small smile too just as the girl had just finished eating her breakfast.

"Anyway," her mother continued, "They work at the school in Latium."

The girl looked to her mother with wide eyes, "Really?! You mean that school?"

"Raina…" her father muttered just as she caught herself still holding her spoon in mid air.

"O-Oops." She forced a small smile and placed her spoon back down, "Sorry."

"It's fine, dear." her mother said as she continued, "It seems that she's willing to help you with your problem."

"My problem?" the girl's smile faltered as she spoke awkwardly, "Y-You mean, my magic?"

"That's right." Her father replied with a small smile.

"They might be able to solve it?" she asked.

"Most likely." Her mother smiled, "Or at least figure out what the problem could be."

"O-Oh…"

"They'll be able to help." Her father said with a nod, "They've helped your mother when she had trouble with her magic as a young student and me as well."

She looked to the pink hair woman with a look of surprise, "Really? You had trouble with magic too?"

Her mother nodded with a smile, "I was your age too when my mother and teacher talked with our friend for help too. At that time, my magic was always failing and causing a lot of trouble. When I went to Mills Claire, we figured out the problem and tried really hard to solve it so I can become the wizardess I am today."

"Then, they can help me too?" Raina asked nervously.

"Why not?" she smiled to her with the usual bright smile on her face, "We talked with them already."

* * *

Though she understood it then, she now wondered if it was truly that simple. After having been given a set of the school's uniform, she was shocked to learn that she would actually be studying there as a student to begin with! Moreover, how did her mother come up with such a simple solution?! Mills Claire isn't just any simple school either. It's a school that has some of the best wizards and wizardesses in the world. Even if they live in Latium protected by the school's magic barrier, it doesn't grant them easy access to become a pupil of the school. In fact, there are many magic schools on the earth, but Latium's Mills Claire is considered to be the best and famous in the world as well. Latium itself was also special. A magic city protected by a barrier made by the school and a wall, so attacks from outside wouldn't harm the residents. Most magic items gather here too and some of the strangest events occurs from time to time. In fact, it's the one place where magic gather! The outside has a wall called the First wall that protect the city from physical attacks and the inside has another called the Second Wall where the magic barrier also does its job. In the heart sits Mills Claire. A gigantic school with forests and mountains in back. One time, she had even seen some made a cat turn red and dance on its hind legs! Those bullies laughed, but she couldn't help but felt sorry for the poor cat. It must've been very painful after she saw it struggling to walk afterwards when the effects wore off. Latium has all kinds of weird objects too. From weird plants to creatures that she's only read in books. In fact, she recalled dragon carrying cars of passengers at the port once with her mother when she visited her maternal grandparents who lives outside of Latium. Her mother called them Dragues. Yet, she worried if the creatures were in any pain, but, as her father always said, she needed to think about herself first or she won't be able to reach out and help others like she wanted to do. When she reached the gates of the large school, she could already see the poupee, or as her mother calls it "Chocolate poupee". She always sees them guarding the door. Only those with their student id can enter the school grounds. Yet, despite it being everyone's dream to attend the school, she can't say the same for herself. That was unless it has magic animals! She wondered if she would even be able to fit into the school with such an idea, though. Yet, when she arrived, the poupee, dressed like an official guard with fancy guard uniform and rifle stopped her with an open palm. He wanted something from her. She hesitated, "I'm really sorry. I don't have an ID yet."

He looked ready to reject her passage, so she quickly brought up, "Actually, I'm looking for someone from the school. They should be meeting me outside of the gates. Have you seen someone outside and from the school, sir?"

He pointed to a tree where a young woman in the same a black hood, a white blouse, a brown corset, burgundy tights, black boots, and a black bubble skirt, just like her. She also had the strange but cute brown hair shaped into tight swirls that come down to her elbows like cornets. She also looked about Raina's age and rather hesitant.

"I think that's her?" Raina replied and gave the man a deep bow, "Thank you very much!"

She ran over to the woman and called out to her, "Um! Excuse me!"

"Oh!" She turned to Raina with a bright smile, "Yes-! Ah, that uniform. Could you be Raina?"

"Yes!" A wide relieved grin came over Raina's face as she nodded.

"Great! I finally found you!" the woman said clapping her hands together in relief, "Well, actually, you found me, but oh well… I'm Sabrina by the way."

Raina shook her outstretched hand, "Nice to meet you! I'm Raina."

"It's nice to meet you Raina." Sabrina said with a smile, "I'm here to pick you up according to what Professor Vania asked. I'll also be your roommate."

"You're also my roommate?" Raina looked to her in surprise, "Wow! Having you as my roommate sounds like a blast! I've always wanted to try living with a friend."

Sabrina giggled, "That's great. I've been by myself for a while now, so I was a bit lonely. I'm glad I got this chance to get a new roommate and a new friend."

As they returned to the front gates, Raina thanked the Poupee again before Sabrina asked for her letter. She gave Sabrina the letter and, with Sabrina's ID, she handed it over to the poupee. Poupee are supposedly puppets made from mud and earth materials then shaped into human figures and given movements with magic before given roles. Though it's like that, she can't help but feel as if the poupee are more like humans as well. When the gates open, Raina could see it. The blue pointed roof and stone walls just like the templates in the city halls' reception desks she once saw as a child. Mills Crea School of Magic. It's just like a castle from fairy tale books! According to its history, it was created by a person called Fata Molgana and the school had been his personal castle which he donated to become what it is today. It had been remodeled and repaired many times over the hundreds of years with new additions to become what it is today. They say that the castle is completely unlike its original appearance, but there's barely any recollections of the castle's original appearance, unless maybe their library has it? Having gotten to the Final gate, Sabrina told me to use the emblem medal on my uniform and insert it into the strange looking indent in the wall. Apparently, the poupee would've done that, but it was too early to start that shift at this schedule. It was a weekday, after all. When the doors open one more time, they were in what looks to be a long hall with strange looking bird statues sitting in the indents of the walls. Many students walked about the school halls as Sabrina led her to the headmaster's office. Raina thought she could feel the eyes on her and got a little uncomfortable. It can't be helped since she arrived a bit late. School had already started last week, after all. When they got to the third floor, there was a double wooden doors where the supposed headmaster is suppose to be. If she remembered correctly, the man's name is Clemence, but she pondered about his reaction to her situation when he would talk to her. Still, he's often busy, so the chance of this happening shouldn't be likely, right? Then, who would she be meeting with? According to her mother they were special people. Could it be them?

"Are you all right, Raina?" Sabrina asked as she looked to her.

Raina nodded slightly, "Y-Yeah. It's just my first time meeting an Ancient. I don't know what to feel…"

"It'll be fine." Sabrina smiled, "There's nothing to be worried about. Honest. They're a bit unique, but very nice. Appearance wise, they look just like everyone here. They just live longer."

"That's true…" Raina slowly nodded more confidently, "Yeah! Now that you said it that way, I can't wait to meet them."

Facing the doors, I took a deep breath before placing my hand on the door knob to one of them.

"I'll be waiting in the dorm." Sabrina smiled, "Good luck, Raina."

"Mh." She nodded in response and smiled, "Thanks. I'll be back soon."

"Come, step inside."

The sudden voice behind the door nearly made her jump before she forced a small smile, "Excuse me."

She opened the door and walked in. As the doors closed behind her, she saw that the office looked like your average office. A couple couches and a coffee table, a bookshelf, painting that almost looks as if it could move, a rug, and an office desk. There stood a young woman who looked a little more mature than her mother with a red cloak, dress, and witch hat, or so she calls it. Another was a boy with with a robe and hood that looked like it could be too big for him and a staff that looked nearly twice as tall as him. On the staff sat a pretty orange parrot that immediately caught her attention. It was a very pretty and cute creature. Regardless, both figures have blond hair and red eyes. The woman smiled with a chuckle, "Welcome to Mills Crea. We've heard much about you from your parents. I'm Professor Vania, and I manage this school. I'll be your mentor as well."

"Nice to meet you!" Raina smiled after hearing the warm welcome, "I'm Raina. I'm glad to be here!"

"Really?" Professor Vania snickered and looked to the boy who shared the same look of interest, "A spunky one like her mother. Not bad at all."

The boy then shrugged as she continued, "I must say, the outfit I picked for you looks splendid."

"Th-Thank you." Raina replied though a bit confused and a tad bit nervous. She was pretty certain that most of the students here wore nearly the exact same clothing for female. Yet, she didn't want to point that out since the woman seemed really nice. In fact, she and the boy look alike. Siblings, perhaps?

The professor giggled, "You've grown to be a cutey. Feeling a little nervous?"

She looked up in surprise, "Huh?"

The boy suddenly cleared his throat as the Professor took notice of this, but chuckled, "You can relax around me. Don't worry. There's nothing to be afraid of."

Though Raina nodded, she can't help but notice the boy cough now before clearing his throat the second time.

"Um…" Raina hesitated, "Excuse me, Professor Vania. But, there's…"

Though the professor clearly saw the boy, she looked back to her and smiled wickedly, "What was that bothersome noise? Oh well, I'm sure it's nothing impor-"

"Pardon?! Do not dismiss me as noise!" the boy snapped angrily, "I will not let this happen a second time, dotard!"

Though he looked like a little boy throwing a tantrum, he regained his composure almost immediately when he looked to her with a smile, "I'm known as Ivan. I manage the school as well, along with this brazen one here. I understand your situation well, so know that you are in good hands at Mills Crea."

"R-right…" Raina responded hesitantly with a look of bewilderment. Despite his looks, he doesn't seem to talk like a child… Like she thought, could he also be-

"Yet again, your outmoded way of greeting lacks any semblance of compassion." the woman sighed.

Ivan scowled as he turned to her, "Excuse me, you buffoon? Once again, have you forgotten our duty as protectors of Mills Crea?"

"Oh, I'd never forget." Vania smiled, "Or did you forget we are professors before we are protectors?! It is our job to make our students feel welcome."

"Oh?" the man smirked, "And you accomplish that by flirting with a face like you'll snatch her away and-"

"Well now," Vania chuckled, "Doesn't this feel familiar?"

Just as the mood took a dangerous turn, Vania's words seemed to have broken the tension as a nostalgic smile appeared on her face. Seeing this Ivan to chuckled and shrugged, "The wonders…"

It was then that Vania looked to her with a mysterious smirk, "I'm surprised you didn't question us if we were related."

Raina thought for a bit before answering, "Um, but you're siblings, right? The way argued just now made me think that way."

"Oh?" Ivan smiled wide before that became a smirk, "If so, which do you think is the elder?"

"Professor Ivan?" Raina responded slightly hesitant, "It's just the way you speak and interact with Professor Vania made me think that you are older than her."

Both professors looked slightly impressed by her words, but it wasn't as important as Professor Ivan went on to introduce his bird to her. Apparently, it was a phoenix in the form of a read and orange parrot with long tail feathers. Like to the point it reached the floor!

"Palumoculus?" she managed carefully before asking hesitantly, "Is it all right to just call you Palu?"

The bird chirped like a parrot much to Raina's delight.

"Is that a yes?" she asked with a wide smile.

Though the bird warble for a bit, Raina grinned wider in understanding, "You're very smart."

This time, the bird seemed to blush as Professor Vania giggled, "This is quite a surprise. Well then, enough games."

Raina looked to her curiously as the professor continued, "So, you're the problem child that proved too much for my precious disciple Lulu to handle?"

"Y-Yes, miss." She responded nervously.

"Before we deem what to do with you, there is something we wish to investigate first." Professor Ivan stated firmly, "But this location is ill-suited for it. Come with us."

"Um, okay…"

Hearing this, concern plagued her thoughts as she followed the professors out of the headmaster's office. Vania placed a hand on her head and smiled to Rania.

"Try not to get too nervous." Vania smiled, "We'll try to find the source of the problem."

* * *

It was then that they arrived at the main hall. There was a beautiful large crystal chandelier that shone in many colors and to gigantic windows that nearly covered the walls on both sides of the hall entrance. She looked about curiously. It was certainly a large room as she began to think of events such as balls and such.

"We use this hall for ceremonies and events where the whole student body gathers." Vania said to her, "It's size also make it useful for large-scale magic as well."

"Large-scale magic?" Rania raised a brow.

"Yes," the professor chuckled, "just you watch. It's the one area where my good-for-nothing brother surprisingly shines."

"Silence, you oaf!" Ivan snapped, "Your manners are just as rotten as your words too many."

Rania didn't quite understand the last part, but she guess that's how well the two gets along. As Professor Ivan grumbles, he brought forth his staff and closed his eyes. At that moment the air around Rania shifted. She shuddered slightly as Vania grins, "You'll be fine."

_"From aged and ancient soil, heed my call, ancestors of old. I beckon thee, forefathers of all creation who imbue the air. I seek the trap of trials. Like ripples on water and clouds without body, capture the light of this fledgling soul. I call for the gate of Judgement!"_

As Professor Ivan finished the spell, light erupted from around her blanketing her entire surrounding and forcing her to shut her eyes. When she could finally open them, a multitude of magic circles had spread across the hall's floor. One circle sat at the center. One that was much larger than the others.

"This is sudden," Professor Ivan said with a frown, "but I wish to measure your capacity. This magic circle will react to your innate element and magic power within. This way, Raina."

She nodded nervously and Professor Vania said, "Don't you worry. All you have to do is stand there, and it'll be over in no time. Relax."

"Y-Yes!"

It was all she could manage in the whilst of gathering herself back together. She took a step into the circle the professor led her to. The moment she stood in the center. She held her whistle from around her neck close to her.

'The offering hath come." Professor Ivan continued from outside of the circles, "Now is the time of trial. Color ingrained within all life, show the latent power hidden within!"

He struck the ground with the bottom tip of his staff and light wrapped around Raina as she shut her eyes, but, even then, it was useless. A shiver ran down her spine and flashes of light came down from head to toe. She tried to combat this scary feeling in her and, when she did, the flashes of light became faster and hotter. Finally, when she felt a sensation began to ebb away, she could hear a ring in her head that ached so bad she fell to her knees as she clutched the sides of her head.

She thought she could hear one of the professors calling out to her, but her head hurts so much she couldn't bring herself to let go. A cry was heard before all went black.

When she came to, she found herself on the ground staring up at the chandelier before the professors' faces came into view.

* * *

"Raina?" Vania said with a look of relief, "How do you feel?"

She slowly got up as she responded, "M-My head still hurts a little, but I'm fine… What happened?"

She looked between the two professors who looked as they were troubled as well before Professor Ivan spoke, "We do not know yet. Could you tell me what had happened?"

Raina thought for a bit before she nodded, "After Professor Ivan finished the spell, I felt a shiver and the flashes of light became faster. It was really hot and my head began to throb…"

Both professors looked rather alarmed when they heard this and looked to each other as Vania began, "Have you seen anything like this before?"

"No." Ivan said with a grimace, "This is the first time the spell had this particular effect. Flashes of light and heat is nothing of the norm. She is the first to have collapsed from the spell."

"Then, is she an innocent too?"

Professor Ivan shook his head with a frown, "I do not know. But, that cry…"

"It sounded like a dragon." Vania nodded her head as her brother did the same in response.

"It would be best to speak with one of their kind if it was such the case." the boy said with a frown, "I shall contact the grandparents immediately to notify him."

"To speak with the dragon?" Vania said with a frown, "Yet, the boy doesn't seem to know where his father is either. Though, perhaps he could be willing to show himself to us, even if brief. I'll speak with the girl's guardians. But, Raina..."

There was a long confusing silence as Raina could feel the atmosphere grow heavy and barely understood their words. She wrapped her hands around the whistle tied around her neck as she watched them in confusion and hesitation. She didn't know what was going on, but she was worried. She watched as Ivan thought long and hard before he nodded real slow, "We'll… let her continue taking courses here for a week to six months. Hopefully, by the appointed time, Lagi would arrive with his father in tow."

"Um…" Rania hesitantly spoke up, "Wh-What's going on?"

Vania looked like she wanted to respond, but she only looked to her brother hesitantly. It was the first to see the professor like this to the sibling she often quarreled with, it seems. Since Ivan wore a look of surprise, she guessed her thought was on the mark. Yet, even Ivan hesitated before continuing, "Do you recall from your studies that everyone has at least one element different per each individuals?"

"Yes, sir." Raina responded, "Everyone has at least one element dwelling in their bodies and that element is what helps them build up on the knowledge."

"That is correct." Ivan responded with a slight shrug as if saying it was good enough, "Yet, we still can not see what your element is. It seems that something is interfering with the flow."

"To become stronger, one needs to know the element in their body and knowing it could help stabilize your magic and grow stronger." Vania responded, "However, unlike your mother who was an innocent and had no elements at first, we couldn't see your element clearly. Instead, we heard a dragon cry."

"A dragon?" Raina's eyes widen in surprise.

"From our expertise, this is the first time we've come across such an unusual case. Which is why we are going to find another dragon and see if he knows what is going on." Vania answered with a nod.

As she heard this, she was both mystified and in awe. Dragons are noble creatures and are thought to be very dignified. They're thought to be much more powerful than dragues that pull the dracargoes. Yet, Raina felt her heart shudder as she asked, "My mother…"

"When she first came, we discovered that she lacked an element." Professor Ivan answered, "By making connections with those around her here, she was able to use all six elements. Your father being one of those people. But, we were unable to make certain if you have a similar case yourself."

"I see…" Rania could only mutter this quietly, "Then, what's going to happen to me if we can't find what's wrong with me?"

"We…" Professor Ivan frowned, "We may have to seal away your magic."

"That-!" Raina's eyes widen in surprise as she looked to them.

"If we let it go uncared for, there's a possibility that you may hurt those around you even more, even if it was unintentional." Professor Vania responded shaking her head, "Though it wouldn't be bad for her to make those connections with people here just as Lulu had. We could temporarily place her situation as having no element for now, can't we?"

Professor Ivan thought for a bit before nodding his head, "Yes. I can allow that much to her."

"I… I understand." Raina nodded her head firmly, "Th-Then, I'll do my best and study here while making connections!"

Vania chuckled, "Good. You'll need knowledge to support your magic, but connections isn't enough. Find your flow in yourself from those connections. The elements are sought by exposure to those around you."

"If it would be this, then she would require six months as well…" Professor Ivan said with a nod, "If right, then we may be able to confirm her element mystery by the second week and allow her to continue this trial, a test, by the end of the six months period. But, should you fail, we'll seal your magic and you would not be able to attend school."

"Y-Yes, sir!" Raina responded firmly as she carefully got up with a confident nod, "I'll make it. To find my element and pass this trial.

"Oh…" Vania looked to her curiously with a wider smile, "I'm looking forward to it, then."

Despite the troubling heart, Raina forced it down and smiled wide. She was going to make it. Just like her mother!

* * *

That day, she was brought to the infirmary room for a quick check-up before they allowed her to leave. However, the moment she walked out, she soon realized that she had already gotten herself lost. She looked about and found herself in the courtyard.

"If only I had looked up instead." Raina mumbled with a sigh.

As she wondered about, she noticed a figure with purple hair like lavender walking over to her in the boy's uniform consisting of a black cloak, white shirt, leather shoes, and, normally, black or brown pants. Perhaps, he knows the way to the dorms. She called out, "Excuse me!"

While waving her hand, she rushed over to him.

"Huh?" the student turned around with a raised brow, "You are?"

"Ah. I'm new here." she responded with a small smile, "My name is Raina."

"Raina." He nodded his head, "I'm Ken. So, is there something you need?"

She nodded her head, "Yes. I'm looking for the girl's dorm. Do you know where that is?"

He pointed to a wing of the castle, "Behind the school ground, there should be a large mirror with a beast eye. I believe the beast is red?"

"I see. Thank you very much!" she gave him a deep bow before turning around and running, "See you again!"

She didn't know if he waved back or not, but the sun was setting and she needed to hurry.

* * *

When she had found the dorm, she realized that she was in one of the castle wings and Sabrina had been waiting for her!

"Sabrina!" Raina called out nearly out of breath, "Sorry! I got lost and found someone to tell me the way."

"It's okay." Sabrina wore a small smile and sighed, "I probably should've came to find you, then."

"It's fine." She replied waving her hand, "Now that I made it, I won't get lost that easily."

"You sure?" her roommate looked to her nervously.

"Yeah." she smiled and looked to the mirror curiously when she noticed something moved, "Is that...?"

Sabrina nodded with a smile, "This is the mythical beasts beyond the Glass. The red beast that guards the entrance to the girl's dorms. There's one guarding the boy's dorms too. It'll let you through."

"I see." Raina looked to the eye curiously before she smiled, "Thank you for the hard work! I'm Raina! It's nice to meet you"

"You're not scared of it?"

Raina raised a brow, "But a beast that works this hard everyday for us must be nice, right?"

"I guess." Sabrina tilted her head in confusion.

The beast huffed as the image changed into a gigantic mouth with sharp teeth!

"Huh?" Raina's eyes widen in surprise.

Sabrina giggled, "It's fine. Now, we walk through the mirror."

"Oh." Raina watched Sabrina walk into the mirror as Raina quickly did the same after her.

The other side was another hall and many doors. Sabrina took her hand and smiled, "Come on! I'll show you where our room are. The number is very easy to remember."

So, she followed the girl and made a couple turns down the hall before arriving at a door numbered "123".

"See? Easy, right?" Sabrina smiled.

Raina nodded her head with a wide grin, "Yes! Very!"

The room was larger than she had expected with one large table in front of a window and two beds on adjacent sides. A vine-like plant sat in the middle of the table, an ink bottle with a pen stick out of it, some books, a crystal ball, and a candle lamp. The room was dimly lit due to the setting sun. Sabrina smiled, "Welcome to our room."

She walked over and lit a small matchstick next to the lamp before lighting the lamp.

"Thank you!" Raina smiled.

She pointed to one of the beds that had her bag and luggage, "That's your bed there. If you need any help, don't hesitate to ask. I'd be happy to help."

"Okay!" Raina nodded her head.

"We should go get dinner soon." Sabrina continued, "It starts at seven sharp. You can also grab lunch around twelve in the afternoon. Arrive later and there won't be any food left."

"I understand." Raina nodded her head.

It was then that she noticed Sabrina still staring at her which made Raina ask, "Is there something on my face?"

"Huh? Oh, no! Sorry..." Sabrina frowned hesitantly, "It's just… You're Lady Omni's daughter, so I thought you'd resemble her, but-... Oh, I'm really sorry! It probably sounded like I was being rude…"

"It's fine." Raina brushed it off with a smile, "Everybody tells me that all the time, so I'm used to it. It's true though…"

Raina hummed softly in confusion as she touched her long blond hair that was braided and tied into two loops, "I don't have anything from my parents or grandparents. Neither of them have blond hair and my eyes aren't green like my dad's. Bright yellow eyes, like mine, seem to be uncommon too."

Lady Omni is her mother's alias. Being the first person in history to have all six elements, she became very popular since graduating from Mills Crea and, with her dad being the new leader of a formerly-bad organization of some sort and a young prodigy, both of their fame grew. Yet, unlike her mother's pretty wavy pink hair and gold color eyes or her dad's black hair and green eyes, she had neither. Instead, she looked very different from them.

"That's true." Sabrina smiled, "But they seem to fit you really well. I like it."

"Thanks!" Raina couldn't help but blush a little. It was one of the few times she got to hear someone praise her over her appearance, so it couldn't help that it made her feel embarrassed.

* * *

The next day, Raina got up before the sun rose and got dressed. She looked over just as she finished putting on the robe. Sabrina was slowly getting up as she looked over to Raina with wide eyes, "You're up already?"

"Yup!" Raina smiled, "I tend to wake up early for some reason. You can sleep a little more if you want?"

"It's fine." her roommate smiled, "I get up around this time anyway. Anymore and I'll never wake up."

"Okay." Raina nodded as she began stuffing materials into her bag.

When they left the room, Sabrina asked her to wait in the main hall for her since she forgot her wand in their room. It was then that Raina noticed a couple boys walk over to her. One of the raised a brow and asked, "Is Sabrina not out yet?"

Raina shook her head in response, "No. She forgot something and went back to our room."

"Oh, so you're the new student." the other smiled, "I'm Cole and this is Paul."

"I'm Raina. It's nice to meet you!" She replied with a bright smile.

"Raina?" Paul raised a brow and ruffled his auburn hair, "That… sounds familiar."

"Really?" Cole looked to him with a frown, "Is it someone you know?"

"Perhaps?" the boy shook his head, "It'll probably come to me later. Welcome to Mills Crea."

"Thanks!" Raina smiled just as Sabrina walked out of the glass. "Sabrina! So, did you find it?"

"Yeah." the girl smiled back and nodded her head just as she took out her silver wand, "It was under my books."

"Ah…" Raina frowned as she recalled the enormous stack of books back in their dorm room, "It's a good thing your wand is metal, then."

"Yeah. I'll be more careful in the future." Sabrina nodded with a small smile when she looked over in surprise, "Oh! Paul. Cole. Good morning!"

"Morning." Cole smiled just as Paul reached over and pet her head.

"Again?" Sabrina pouted as she tried to brush off his hand, "We aren't children, you know."

"Come on. It's just a little-"

"No." Sabrina rebuked curtly before turning to Raina, "Come on! Your first class is with Professor Elbert, you know!"

"Professor Elbert?" Raina raised a brow just as her roommate grabbed her hand and dragged up the stairs.

"He's nice, I promise." Sabrina smiled, "He's just looks a little… like a sage."

"Huh?" Raina frowned in confusion as she hurried up the stairs and down the halls.

* * *

It was then that she found herself waiting in what looks to be the common room of the dorms alone. There were some sofas and tables. Bookshelf sat against the walls filled with games and books, of course. Raina looked around for a bit with her leather school bag in her hands. The wooden floor was rather spotless and the walls were that of stone and some beige color walls. As she looked from the intricate designed furniture to the fireplace that was still alight. She was surprised by the sound of something crash behind her and turned around. She then saw that it was a man with long forest green hair and green baggy robe. He seemed to have fallen down the steps and the papers flew everywhere. Surprised, Raina rushed over to him as she picked up the papers.

"O-Oh! Thank you…" He said taking the papers from her hands as she offered them to him, "That was a little embarrassing."

"Everyone stumbles sometimes. Are you okay?" Raina questioned him worriedly.

"Yes… Ow, my back..." the man nodded with a small, possibly forced, smile as he picked up his long wooden staff and painfully stood up before his eyes widen in surprise as they rested on hers, "Oh. Could you be… Raina?"

"Yup!" she replied with a bright smile.

"I see…" his eyes grew slightly wider as he chuckled, "Time really does fly… I'm a professor here at this school."

"Oh!" Raina's eyes also grew wide, "Could you be… Professor Elbert?"

"That's right!" Elbert's eyes seemed to smile as one also grew on his lips.

"I see. It's a pleasure to meet you, Professor Elbert!" Raina said with a bright smile.

Seeing this, Elbert smiled wider with a small chuckle, "The pleasure is mine. I'm sorry to ruin your impression of me as a professor from the get-go."

"Huh?" Raina raised a brow and shook her head, "You didn't ruin it. My mother and father sometimes stumble too, you know."

"Ah. Lulu and Est was it?"

Raina nodded with a small smile, "Yes…"

"It's just as I thought!" Elbert smirked a little, "You look much like your mother. She wore the same smile when I first fell on these same stairs during her first week here."

"Really?!" Raina looked up in bewilderment as her professor chuckled.

"Yes. I had been worried over my appearance before her and she consoled me just as you had, though it was a little embarrassing to be consoled by your own student."

"So you taught my mother too…"

"Yes, but we can talk about that another time." Professor Elbert forced a small smile as he threw his hood over his head, "Like before, I'm afraid we're also running late. Let us head to the school."

"But…" Raina looked to him hesitantly.

He gave a quick chant and waved his staff then smiled, "I'll be fine. It doesn't hurt too much anymore."

"Oh, good!" Raina smiled in relief.

* * *

Back in the school, she found his lessons in technical skills to be a bit difficult than what her mother had taught her, but it wasn't so bad that she couldn't keep up. Instead, some of the things she learned had been what her parents were teaching her while she was homeschooled. When they were done, the professor told her that she could ask him for help or advice sometimes as he was also the housemaster. When they were done, they started taking a walk in the gardens as she admired the flowers.

"Huh?" Raina looked to him in surprise, "I came here before as a child?"

"Yes!" Professor Elbert smiled wider, "You were rather small and gotten yourself a bad head injury. Your parents were frantic and came to me for help right away. Then, you stayed for a few days before you returned home."

"I did?" Raina said with a frown, "I never heard that before… But, why was I here?"

"I believe you were visiting the school with your parents on a visiting trip with Professor Vania." Elbert wore a look of confusion, "Did she not tell you?"

"No…" Raina raised a brow, "I wonder why?"

"Hm…" Elbert shook his head, "Well, perhaps she has her reasons. She's more experienced than I am in teaching. In comparison to them, I'm still a novice."

"Really?" Raina frowned, "But, you seem like a professor with many disciples already and your lessons were easy to understand."

"I don't know about that…"

"But, it's true!" Raina insisted firmly.

They talked about a lot of things and, by the time they returned to the school, she found herself more nervous than she was excited.

"Raina?" Professor Elbert raised a brow, "Could you be nervous?"

"S-Sort of…" Raina responded hesitantly, "Are… Are Professor Vania's and Professor Ivan's lessons hard or are they scary?"

The professor smiled, "Well, they're not the easiest professors, but, no matter how hard the classes are, you can pull through to the end if you put your mind to it."

"Really?" Raina looked up to him nervously.

"Yes." he nodded, "I'll be rooting for you. So, just give it everything we've got."

"Understood!" Rania nodded her head firmly with a more enthusiastic smile on her face now.

She couldn't give up now! Not if she want to be able to use magic!

"You'll be having Professor Ivan's class today, so I'll escort you to the headmaster's office." her professor offered with a smile, "Make sure you don't get left behind, all right?"

"Yes, sir!" Raina replied with a firm nod.

* * *

Professor Elbert was very nice and helped take her to the headmaster's office, probably because of when he learned that she had already gotten lost on her first day yesterday. When they parted in front of the headmaster's office, she took a deep breath before opening the door and entered with a bright smile, "Good morning, Professor Ivan! I'm ready for my first lesson!"

"Good."

The boy looked up from the coffee table and smiled, "My class will be no cake-walk, I warn you. So, work hard and you shall reap the benefits."

"U-Understood!"

With that, her second class had already began and, despite the warning and enthusiasm, she soon learned that she had underestimated his lesson despite being prepared for a difficult one. Yet, she worked hard to concentrate on her studies, to which he approved a bit, but it was certainly true that she was lacking knowledge when he took note of that. His class was full of difficult terms that listening to it nearly made her head spin. She thought that, if this was what her first lesson in his class would be like, then she worried for her future.

"Have you given up already?" her professor looked to her in disappointment.

"N-Nope!" She responded as firmly as she could, "I'll give it everything I've got!"

"Good." He smiled and leaned back a little in his seat, "If you wish, I can teach you about the history of Mills Crea and the foundation of magic as well. What say you?"

"Of course!" She smiled wider.

"Then, tell me…" he smiled, "What do you know about Mills Crea?"

"Well…" She thought for the basics and began, "Mills Crea is the world's first magic school and has elite courses that can not be found anywhere else. It was founded by an Ancient named Fata Molgana and the Dr. of Magic, Dr. Cornelius."

"That is the basic content in books." He smiled though not too wide, "Originally, only ancients were able to wield the mysterious craft called magic. However, they were shunned by humans due to this power, and not all of them escaped persecution."

"That's awful…" She frowned disheartened, "They suffered a lot…"

Professor Ivan nodded, "Yet to some extent, we all fear that which is not like ourselves. In any case, the ancients and humans were greatly estranged. It was then when a human, reckless and bold, approached the Ancients. That man was Dr. Cornelius."

"Um, didn't he asked Fata Molgana, who was the leader of the Ancients, to learn magic from him?"

"What a lunatic idea it was." he said earning him a look of confusion from her, "You see, Dr. Cornelius was a man thirsty for knowledge, craving scholarly pursuits against better judgement. No one knows why Fata Molgana accepted him, but an unlikely bond connected the two of them, and a peculiar friendship formed."

"Then, using that knowledge he gained from Fata Molgana, he devised a way for humans to use magic, right?" Raina said curiously, "The reason we are capable of using magic today is because of Dr. Cornelius and Fata Molgana. Without them, humans wouldn't have magic or Mills Crea today! This castle used to be Fata Molgana's castle, right?"

"Indeed." his smile grew wider a little as he continued, "For five hundred years, Mills Crea has undergone repairs and transformation. So the original structure is hardly recognizable. Even to this day, secrets left behind by Fata Molgana sleep within these very walls."

"That's amazing! Five hundred years is a really long time…"

"And yet, so little." Professor Ivan noted with a nod, "Humans have not learned all there is to know about magic in these past five hundred years. In this school, there are people researching day and night to uncover new forms of magic."

Raina nodded, "I remember it was said that all the research happens in the Black Tower and the place is forbidden for students and outsiders to go there. Wow… I learned so much today! Thanks to the founders, we were able to study here and learn magic. I need to study harder if I want to learn more magic."

The professor chuckled, "Indeed. See to it that you work and study hard to make them proud."

"I understand!" Raina nodded with a wide smile.

It was then that professor Ivan noticed the magic clock on the wall and smiled, "Well then, let's end today with that. Any more and I'm afraid you might shut down."

Raina forced a small awkward laugh.

"Tomorrow, Vania will instruct your lesson on magic power. Put forth your best efforts… and be careful."

"I will, sir!" Raina nodded firmly with a more enthusiastic smile.

Her professor wore a small smile as he chuckled, "I would ask that you drop the formalities, Raina. Only call me 'Professor' or 'Professor Ivan'."

"O-Okay…" Raina wore a small smile as she silently wished that she could fight back the stiff feeling in her.

"Also," He brought up a piece of paper from the table and handed it to her, "Head to the library and read this list of books."

"Huh?" She took it and looked over it.

"I carefully selected them myself. You're to read them all, mind you." He said with a smile, "Think of it as homework."

Meaning, it was mandatory that she read them, right?

"O-Okay…" She responded with a small smile as she noticed the long titles and more difficult words in a long list.

After hearing his instructions to the library, she began to leave the room.

"Be cautious not to get lost again."

She turned around in surprise as Professor Ivan smirked, "We saw you leave the castle in the wrong direction yesterday evening. Had Ken not found you, Vania would've gone in his stead."

"O-Oh!" She stammered as her cheeks grew a little warm, "I-I'll be careful, sir- Professor. Thank you for the warning…"

* * *

Having left in search of the library, she finally found the double doors professor Ivan had spoke of.

"This must be it!" She smiled in relief and quickly walked in only to stare in amazement as she saw the large records of books stacked up high and neatly in bookshelves on all four to five stories!

"This is incredible!" She gapped, "I've never seen such a massive library in my entire life!"

The shelves reached from floor to ceiling on each floor. It looked like a maze of books!

It was then that she felt something push her from behind as she turned around and saw that it was another male student. The teenage boy cleared his throat, "If you're done gapping, move so others can come through."

"S-Sorry." She replied and quickly stepped away in confusion.

The boy didn't so much as to look at her when he walked by. That was also rude of him. After all, he only had to ask. It was then that four girls hurried up to her to which she looked up in surprise.

"Hello-!"

"Next time, be sure not to stand in Kris's way." One of the girls with blue hair stated firmly, "It's important that he get his chance to study whatever he wishes."

"Okay?" Raina nodded despite her confusion, "I'll be more careful next time."

Suddenly, one of the girl with blond hair spoke up, "Ah! Aren't you the new girl in school?"

"New, you say?" the other black hair girl looked to her in surprise.

"Then, she probably doesn't know…" a short brown hair girl muttered in disappointment.

"So, that's it." The blue hair girl responded with a much more relaxed smile, "Well, listen closely. We are Kris's fan club. My name is Alicia. Leader of the club."

"I'm Shelly." The black hair girl said with a wide smile.

"My name is Elizabeth." the blond hair girl stated with a proud smile whilst holding a elegant crafted box.

"And, I'm called Cathy!" said the brown hair girl with the beret hat.

"It's nice to meet you." She gave them a curt bow, "My name is Raina! I'm surprised to hear that he has a fan club, though…"

"Well, of course!" the blue hair woman stated with a wide smile before she frowned, "Wait, are you trying to say that he's not worth a club too?!"

"Huh?" Raina's eyes widen in surprise. Were Fan clubs this doubtful? If so, she felt very sorry for them. So, she shook her head ferverently and replied, "Not worth- No! I think it's natural to follow someone if you admire them that much. Of course, I can't speak for myself, but I think it's great that you admire someone."

"Is that so…" Alicia breathed a small sigh of relief and smiled before she stated firmly, "Then, remember to steer away from Kris's path from now on."

"O-Okay?" she said with a look of confusion though she was soon ignored.

When they were gone, Raina looked down to her list again. There was so many book titles with complicated words that she feared they'd be difficult for her to read. Still, she didn't want to back out and felt that as thought she was getting more and more distracted. Yet…

"There's so many books, though…" She muttered silently. How was she going to find the books she needed.

She walked up the steps and down the steps many times when she heard a sigh and saw another male student standing on a floating floor with a gigantic crystal floating over a glowing table and Palu perched next to it. The student grumbled with an angry look by the time her curiosity gave her enough reason to go check the situation out.

"Not this one. Nor this one…" the teenager with red hair grumbled shifting hazardously through the books, "Gods, dang it! Stupid bird…"

Her heart was inflamed with rage when she heard this, but she bit down on her lip and sighed before asking, "What's wrong?"

The teenager might have likely not heard her as he turned to the bird with flames almost shooting from his eyes, "I told you it's not this one! Can't you get it right, you bird-brain rooster?!"

The bird clucked in response as the scenery caught Raina in its unusualness. A man was arguing with a bird. It reminded her much of one of her parent's friends with the pretty jewel on the back of his palm.

"You're suppose to be the master of the library, right?" the man scowled, "Aren't my grades and studies not enough to satisfy you for just one book from the third floor?!"

"Idiot." Palu replied before turning his to the side and closing his eyes. He's totally choosing to ignore him and his hostilities.

"You dare-?!" the man was flabbergasted and snapped, "You useless bird! Who do you think you are? A spoiled brat?!"

"Idiot." Palu stated again.

"You-! I'll teach you a lesson!" the student shouted nearly pushing Raina away when she tried to intervene. It was then that Raina stumbled and nearly fell off the floating steps.

"Ah-!"

She gasped in horror as her hand desperately reached out for the rails, only there was none! It was then that she felt someone supported her back from behind before she could fly in the air. Steadying herself on one of the steps, she breathed a small sigh of relief before looking back, "Thank you- Oh!"

It was a young man in a student uniform with a strange silver hair that seem to have streaks of light blond in between. She was rather surprised by his appearance and it seems as though she has caught his attention too since his eyes grew wider upon seeing her.

"I'm really sorry."

She turned around and saw the red hair man look to her with a grimace as he continued, "I didn't see you and pushed you without looking. I'm really, really sorry about that!"

"Um…" She hesitated before forcing a small smile, "It's fine. Nobody got hurt in the end."

"I don't know." He hesitated with a frown, "Is there anyway I can make it up to you?"

"Then," She smiled as an idea came up, "can you help me find some of these books?"

She handed him the list that he looked through and continued, "I couldn't find them since the library was so big."

"Sure. The measly search system here can find it for you, I believe." he forced a small smile and a side glance to Palu before looking to her with wide eyes, "Huh? I don't recognize you…"

"Oh, I'm new here." Raina replied with a smile, "My name is Raina. It's nice to meet you!"

"Raina?" he raised a brow, "That sound familiar…"

She forced a small smile and continued, "Um, about the books…"

"Oh right! By the way, my name is Livan." He nodded frantically and turned to Palu.

"Levan?" Raina raised a brow.

He cleared his throat and clarified, "Livan. Please don't confuse me with Professor Elbert. We're not related."

"I see…" She muttered quietly.

Then, he went about teaching her how to gather books with Palu's help, much to the familiar's joyful chirps, and showed her the organization system of the library. Apparently, they weren't allowed to borrow or even walk up to the third floor without special qualifications or permissions.

"That'd explain the lack of a stair to the third floor…" She muttered as she walked through the second floor with a pile of books in her hands.

Livan nodded his head with a wide smile, "Most of the books are well-organized and easy to find. If you can't find it, you can check the search booth in the center of the library… though I don't highly recommend it…"

Seeing him blush a little, Raina couldn't help but giggle quietly remembering how he was arguing against a bird. Still, the tour was nice and she was able to find all of her books, yet she feared the amount of reading from the numbers of books and topics in hand.

"Thank you so much, Livan!" She smiled, "You really helped me out today!"

"It's nothing." he smiled back.

Raina smiled wider. Since she had seen him shout so loudly, she feared that things would turn out for the worst, but, seeing him so nice now, it made her smile knowing that he wasn't a bad person at all and hoped that they could continue to get along from then on. As she reached over to a table, she noticed it was already occupied by that same student who saved her earlier.

"Oh!" her eyes widen in surprise, "You're…"

The boy looked up and noticed her as well. He nodded quietly, "You said that you were new here?"

"Yes." she nodded with a bright smile, "I'm Raina. Thank you very much for saving me from a nasty fall earlier."

"You're welcome." He replied bluntly before turning to his book again.

"U-Um…" Raina called out to him, "May I sit here?"

It couldn't be helped since there was practically nowhere else open for her to sit. In fact, Everyone seemed so concentrated that she couldn't bare to call out to them without worry of interrupting them. Luckily, the student nodded his head which brought a relieved smile to her face as she set her books down and began to read with her first book being about Magic Physics. As she read, she did her best to look through the texts, though her eyes would occasionally shift to wherever there was a picture. It was troubling and she feared that she would lose all she had read in that one page. A couple hours had passed when she had noticed the time. She could see the library was already a tint of royal orange similar to Palu's feather when she noticed the boy still reading across from her. It was the same book with strange letters. A…

"Is that a fairytale book?" She called out without meaning to.

The boy looked up and raised a brow, "You can read it?"

"O-oh. Uh…" she hesitated with a look of confusion, "Sort of… I'm not too sure why though. Really!"

The boy stared at her as she froze. Had she said something she wasn't suppose to? Afraid of the boy getting upset, she quickly took the remainder of the books and got up, "S-Sorry! I'll leave right now!"

She hurried to the check out, which was basically where Palu was and borrowed the remainder of books she had yet to finish read or even touch. As she quickly made her way to the door, she noticed the same boy standing there with a raised brow and almost freaked out! W-Was it that bad, or-

She made her way over to the door as the boy looked to her with the same book in hand. As he stretched it out to her, her eyes widen in surprise, "Huh?"

"You can have it if you want." the boy grumbled, "I have another copy at home."

"What? But..."

"It's not the library's copy, if that's what you're worried about." He muttered before shoving the book into her arm. Before she could stop him, he had already left the library and out of sight.

* * *

After changing into more casual clothing, she met up with Sabrina again for dinner. Turns out they could have three meals a day, but breakfast seemed nearly impossible for Sabrina to get to since she had a harder time waking up on some days.

"So how was your first day?" Sabrina asked with a wide smile.

"It was okay." She replied with a small smile, "It's not as good, but not too bad either. Still, I have so much homework to do, I bet I'll have to pull all nighters…"

"Oh. Well, do you best and let me know if you ever need help."

"Thanks, Sabrina!" she replied.

As they talked, Raina told her some parts of her day when Sabrina asked her abruptly, "A boy with silver and gold hair? I think you're talking about the foreign student from an unknown country?"

"Foreign? You know him?" Raina looked to her in confusion.

"Yeah." She nodded, "Not a lot, but his name is Fay. He seemed to have come from a country unknown to us. They say that he could be the second royalty from a foreign kingdom to have attended our school. The first being a prince from Farabald nearly ten years ago."

"Huh?" Raina tilted her head in confusion, "That sounds familiar."

"I wouldn't be surprised." Sabrina responded, "That prince is Bilal and is one of your parent's friends. In fact, I heard your mother was able to achieve her water element because of her friendly link with him."

Being her roommate, she had told Sabrina of her situation and, since she was unable to help, said that she would cheer her on.

"Really?" she muttered in awe as she began to get ready to leave when a chocolate figure suddenly appeared before her making her jump in surprise.

Sabrina giggled, "Did that scare you? The poupee brought us dessert."

It was a poupee… in a maid outfit!

"It's a little late now." Sabrina smiled, "But, we call them chocolat poupee. They're golems that do all the work around the school and the dormitories."

"I-I've heard of them." Raina forced a small smile, "It's just the first for me to see one work as a maid. Mills Crea really is amazing…"

As she said this, she noticed more coming over to her much to her bewilderment.

"Wh-What?" Raina's eyes widen in surprise as she turned to her roommate and pleaded, "S-Sabrina? Th-They're multiplying..."

Sabrina laughed, "They're just getting antsy because you aren't taking your plate of dessert."

"O-Oh…" Raina breathed a small sigh of relief and took the plate from the maid's hand, "Sorry about that and thank you for the dessert."

The poupee then quickly dispersed as she placed the food on the table.

"I've never seen them act like this before…" Raina noted picking up her fork and ready to dig into the slice of pie.

"They're all made from the same lump of mud, so their mind is one." Sabrina explained as she took her plate as well and thanked the poupee, "They also all have the same face."

"Really?" Her eyes widen in surprise, "I didn't notice that before…"

Mills Crea is certainly an exciting and scary place all at once. Yet, it's the very small details to her days that made the fear mellow out with the sweetness of the dessert. It made her wonder why her Father was not as fond of coming to visit as her mother is nor why they never told her that she had been here before.

That night, she tried to finish her reading when a yawn escaped her lips. She heard a chuckle behind her as Raina closed the book tight.

"You've got class tomorrow, too, so maybe you should call it a day?" Sabrina suggested with a wide smile.

"I think so too." Raina agreed before changing into her pajamas and climbing into bed after blowing out the light from the lamp, "Good night…"

* * *

It was the second day of the first week when her first class began. Raina began making her way to Professor Vania's classroom as she thought aloud, "Today, I'll be taking a magics course with professor Vania today. I can do this!"

When she finally found the magic practice room, it was organized like an orchestra classroom with a large chalk board in the center and wooden stools adjacent from it in a curve. Professor Vania stood next to the board with her wooden rose wand in hand and a smile on her face.

"Raina! Welcome to my class! I can't wait to start today's lesson."

Taken by surprise from her enthusiasm, Raina managed a smile too, "M-Me too!"

Her professor giggled before nodding her head, "But, just because I'm easy on the eyes doesn't mean my class will be easy. I hope you came prepared."

"Yes!"

A couple hours had passed when her professor finally nodded her head and smiled, "All right. I'll be nice and cut you some slack today, seeing as how this was your first lesson with me."

"Th-Thank you, Professor Vania…" Raina barely said as she fought back a look of astonishment.

"It'd be a shame to end the lesson on that note… Should I use the extra time to explain to you about elements?" Professor Vania offered with a smile.

"Please do!" Raina responded energetically with as much effort as she could muster out. She already knew about the elements, but it'd be good for her to learn somethings she never knew about before.

Her professor smiled wider, "That's the spirit, Raina. First, let us review. Do you remember all of the elements?"

"I do!" the girl smiled, "There are six of them: Wind, Earth, Water, Fire, Light, and Darkness."

"Well done." her professor nodded her head, "You were told how every living thing in the world possesses an element, yes? But the truth of it is, everything possesses more than just one."

"Really?" Raina's eyes widen in surprise when a thought came to her, "Ah, mother…"

"That's right." Professor Vania smiled proudly, "See here?"

She began to draw on the chalk board, "This vessel represents one's capacity for magic power. The size of the vessel corresponds to how much magic power one person has."

As she drew a simple figure, her student nodded her head and she continued, "In other words, Raina, a person's magic power is a combination of these six elements. Even if a person's element is fire, they are still able to cast wind and water spells. That's possible because they have the six elements."

Raina knew this since her mother had already explained it to her once before.

"Element," Professor Vania continued, "is one of the most significant component in one's magic power. For you to discover your element means to increase one of the six. Or, perhaps in Lulu's case, all six of them."

"I understand now…" Raina nodded firmly, "Mother is really amazing to have increased all six of them… But, is a connection with another element person what can help me?"

"Well, there are many factors that may affect an element." her professor answered with a small smile, "The simplest approach is to become closer with a person whose element is the one you wish to obtain, which was the path Lulu took."

"So, she got along with all six people with different elements."

Professor Vania nodded as she continued drawing more figures, "You see, people who use magic are very sensitive. They are often influenced by other people around them. Just like the girls around your age are influenced by the person they fall in love with."

"F-F-Fall in love?!" Raina could feel her cheeks bloom with warmth as her professor giggled.

"Oh look," Professor Vania smiled, "your cheeks are all red. What a cutie you are…"

Raina couldn't find anything to say in return as she realized how much her professor loves to tease her students. Now she wondered how exactly had her mother been able to go through her entire school life without feeling like her heart could give out and even end up becoming friends?!

When she finally lets me out of the room, she was met by Sabrina who smiled, "Raina! You're finished with class?"

"Yup!" She smiled back, "As you know, that was my last class of the day."

"Great! Do you want to come with me or return to the dorm?"

Raina thought for a bit since she was curious and replied, "I don't know… I wasn't certain of returning to the dorm yet anyway, or the library. I just kind of don't want to go to the library alone."

Not to mention that Sabrina is currently her only friend too.

"Then, you'll have to wait till I'm done with my next class." Sabrina said with a smile, "I'll take you to the library and you can wait there?"

"That sounds like a great plan!" she nodded her head again, "I'll just hang out while waiting for your class to be over."

* * *

Sabrina brought her to the library where she spent some time looking around or catching up on her readings. She then grew tired and left the library and saying bye to Palu. Out of everyone in the school, she seem to already like Sabrina and Palu, though he wasn't a student. Sabrina is kind and a cheerful personality that made it impossible not to like while Palu was a bird familiar but very smart. It was impossible not to like such a pretty bird with such long tail feathers. Still, she wanted to be somewhere so she could rest and be herself without anybody watching too much. When she realized it, she was walking alongside the walls of the school that led to a forest. As usual the weather was very nice and seemed to be the perfect day to go rest outside. Along with the barrier, there was the benefit of good weather daily thanks to the faculty and Magic administration in Latium. It's always to sunny and bright out. The only time she ever saw rain or snow was when she went to visit her maternal grandparents, apart from the rare chances of rain in Latium. Even then, it wasn't cold enough to actually make her wear more than a thin coat, unlike her relatives or parents. Raina looked for a place to sit and relax when she noticed a poupee tending to the gardens. Another poupee that wasn't a guard. Curious, she talked with the poupee and asked for a quiet place to rest to which he pouted to a direction. She thanked the poupee before walking toward it. There was a staircase that led further away from the wall and just ahead was a serene scene of a green forest perking her interest.

"A forest!" She smiled wider, "I wonder if I'll be able to find some animals here?"

As she walked further, she began to see blue waters and hurried over. It was a wide lake of blue waters.

"Beautiful…" She muttered quietly as she saw the light glistening off of the waters.

She found a tree nearby and sat under it as the wind swept through her hair. The soft grass provided a nice cushion for her as she felt a bit snug. It was then that she could feel herself slowly drift away along with the breeze. It was then that she soon recalled the book the Fay guy gave her and pulled it out of her bag. Out of curiosity, she wanted to try and read it when she had the chance, so she brought it with her.

"Well, now's a better chance than ever." She said quietly and touched the front cover gingerly. It was a nice pretty brown leather book with ornament bindings and elegant silver words printed over the cover. The words looked so foreign that she almost couldn't understand the meaning without slowly going over it. As she opened it and slowly began reading, she eventually began to understand that it really was fairytale. One of which was about kingdoms and dragons. The might of dragons and how they suddenly vanished. There was more, but it was difficult for her to read the rest. As she was reading, she thought she heard the sound of rustling and looked up. It was a black cat with something around its neck. The cat's ears perked up once it saw her and meowed loudly. Her heart skipped a beat at the sight of the animal and she smiled wide with an outstretched hand, "Would you like to come here?"

The cat tilted its head for a bit before cautiously walking over to her. She smiled and nodded, "It's fine. I don't bite."

The cat stared at her before seeing it walk closer and closer to her till it was before her eyes. That's when she noticed the pretty silver pattern on its forehead and a cute green scarf laced with a golden necklace chain. Carefully, she reached further softly petted its head as it purred loudly. Her smile grew wider as she watched it sink its head into her palm.

"You're quite tame." she giggled, "And, with that scarf. I wonder if you already have an owner, then. Why are you on school grounds?"

The cat only replied with a soft meow before collapsing on its side and sliding onto its back. She smiled softly and scratched its belly. It was then that the cat got back up and reached out to her chest patting the golden whistle around her neck. She smiled, "Oh this? It's my whistle. I use it in place of a wand."

The cat tilted its head in confusion as she smiled, "You know I kind of wish I could cast magic properly like everyone else."

The cat seemed to have choked on something before forcing a cry. She tilted her head in confusion and smiled, "I know. I'll work harder, so I can become a wizardess like my mother…"

The cat meowed louder before jumping into her arms.

"What?" Her eyes widen in surprise as it pulled on her gold whistle, "Hey! Stop that! What's wrong?"

She was able to force the whistle out of its mouth without harming it before it could break the chain when she heard a voice behind her.

"A cat?"

She spun around just as she noticed a silver hair man in foreign clothing with a boy a little taller than her in the school's uniform. She looked up in confusion, "Um…"

"A black cat…" the boy tilted his head in confusion and said in an unusual accent as the man smiled.

"Yes. It is quite cute." the man chuckled, "Is it yours?"

Raina shook her head, "No, sir."

She carried the cat in her arms and the book in the other as she got up and gave a short courteous bow, "My name is Raina. It's nice to meet you. Are you here to see someone?"

"Raina?" the man's eyes widen in surprise, "Could you be… Lulu's little girl?"

Her eyes widen in surprise as she nodded her head, "You know my mom?"

"I am a close friend to them, yes." he smiled wider, "We heard that Raina started attending Mills Crea too. My name is Bilal and this is Salil."

"Bilal?" Raina's eyes widen in surprise, "But, aren't you also a prince, then? I thought you'd be in Faranbald?"

"For now." Bilal nodded and turned to the boy, "I came to talk with Professor Vania and Professor Ivan."

"I understand." Raina smiled.

"What have you been doing outside of school?" Salil questioned with a look of confusion and curiosity.

"I was taking a break by the lake." Raina smiled wider, "Then, this cat came up when I was reading a book. He's very smart."

"Is he?" Silal looked to the cat in confusion.

He reached out and petted its head softly to which the cat purred quietly and curled up in her arms. The student began to smile wider. When they had left, Raina began to take this as her cue as well and got up to leave.

"Meow!"

The cat was clinging onto her cloak and wouldn't let go! Troubled, she looked about in confusion when she noticed a person passing by and called out to him, "Excuse me!"

The man stopped and turned around just as the cat suddenly let go and rushed back into the bushes. Her eyes widen in surprise and looked up to see the man with silver hair much longer than Bilal's stare at her before he smiled, "Yes?"

She shook her head, "Sorry. It was a false alarm."

"Oh?" the man raised a brow, "Mind I ask what you name is?"

"Sure!" She smiled, "I'm Raina. What's your name, sir?"

The man frowned before he smiled wider that made her slightly shiver, "Hannes."

"Hannes?" She raised a brow.

She felt strangely cold as she continued, "Are you a professor here too?"

He raised a brow again, "Yes… I'm a new professor here."

"Great! I'm new here too!" Raina smiled till she suddenly noticed the sun's position, "Oh no! I have to hurry or I'll be late! I'm really sorry, sir."

"It's fine." the man smiled, "See you again!"

"Yeah! Bye!" she smiled back as she rushed back to the school.

* * *

**Editor: Antex- The Legendary Zoroark**

**(Thanks, Antex! XD)**


	2. Chapter 2: The Magic School

The School of Magic

Upon arriving at the library, Raina found Sabrina waiting for her.

"Sorry for making you wait for so long!" She called out to her.

"It's fine." Sabrina smiled, "I only just arrived too. Come on! You want to study together?"

"Sure!" She replied with an energetic nod.

Sabrina giggled, "You seem happier today. Did something good happen?"

"Yeah!" she smiled, "I'll tell you about it later."

Raina then found a table and pulled out her books just as the fairytale book fell out. Sabrina picked up the book for her with a raised brow, "I've never seen a book like that before. A little fancy for the title."

Raina nodded, "You can tell?"

"My parents are some masters of some large libraries back in our home town." she replied with a confused frown, "I've seen their work before, so I know just how valuable a book is. Not many would go for silver letters on the cover with a picture or more and that ornament looks expensive…"

Trouble, Rain hummed, "I thought so. I've been trying to find Fay so I could return it to him, but I haven't come across him for the whole day. Alicia and her friends haven't seen him either."

"I see…" her roommate raised a brow, "The book looks really interesting, though."

"It does." Rain replied, "It talks about legends of dragons, but then they disappeared in the story."

"They disappeared?" Sabrina frowned, "That's really weird. Dragons don't just disappear."

"I know, right?" she nodded, "So, I wonder why the legends says it like that? It sounds so sad..."

"Do you know the author?"

Raina shook her head, "I couldn't read it."

"That's weird." Sabrina tilted her head in confusion, "Well, let's take a look at it together later. First, we should finish studying."

"Right!" Raina smiled and began to open her assigned reading.

They worked till it was closing time and left for the dining hall for dinner.

"That was good." Raina smiled wide as she picked up her good.

Sabrina giggled with a nod, "Want to head back to the room? We can take a look at that book you got."

"Okay." Raina nodded with a wide smile till she noticed the sounds of shouts and looked up, "What's going on?"

"It sounds like a fight." Sabrina noted with a frown.

It wasn't just shouts. It seems that the entire area grew tense which made her worry more. She frowned, "I'll go check what's going on."

"But, what if it is a fight? It's dangerous to intervene in a fight." Sabrina responded with a frown.

"I'm not planning to either." Raina replied with a frown, "But everybody doesn't like it anymore than we do. I'll be careful."

Despite her cheerful demeanor, the commotion seemed to have shook Sabrina which didn't sit well with Raina seeing her friend so shaken with worry.

"I'll see you back in the dorm room, okay?" Raina replied with a smile.

Sabrina was clearly nervous, but she finally nodded her head though reluctant. Raina then hurried after the shouts by herself when she heard a screech. Her eyes widen in surprise as she rushed faster to the Main Hall. It was there that she saw two people ducking for cover as some number of eagles flew into the Main Hall. She was shocked to see so many birds in one place, but horrified the moment she saw them diving for the students one at a time. She thought fast and quickly rushed to the two students.

"Raina!"

She needed to first bring the students to safety. She grabbed the two students and pulled them under the stairs as fast as she could. She peeked her head out and saw the birds flying about the ceiling.

She heard the door slam shut as she poked her head out again and saw that the front door had slammed shut! She bit the bottom of her lip when she heard someone hiss in anger, "It was your fault that those things came in!"

"I didn't do anything!" the other male student scowled, "You tampered with the door, didn't you?!"

"If I did, I wouldn't be so dumb and get myself caught in it!"

She quickly turned around and said as firmly as she could to get their attention, "Excuse me! Can you two tell me what happened?"

"What do I know?!" the male student glared at her, "We were just shouting when the door suddenly opened and these birds just came at us!"

"Yeah. What else is there?" the second male student growled.

"Looks like you two can agree on something, then."

She looked up and saw a tall man with blue hair, striped shirt and blue jeans squeezing in.

"Julius!" Raina smiled with joy the moment she saw him, "You're here too?!"

Julius struggled a small smile, "I work here, remember? More importantly, what are you doing here? Don't you know how dangerous it is to be out here? Those aren't your normal eagles. They're sea eagles."

"Huh?" Raina frowned, "But, I thought sea eagles don't come in direct contact with humans!"

"I don't know." Julius shook his head, "Bilal was the one who told me about them. Looks like his travels paid off in other ways too. More importantly, you need to-"

"I can help." Raina begged, "I promise I won't hurt myself, so please!"

"Can you make this many birds return outside on your own?" Julius responded with a frown.

"I can." Raina replied firmly, "I know I can."

Julius narrowed his eyes and frowned. No doubt, he wasn't suspecting her to answer this. He was clearly hesitant as she quickly continued, "I just need someone to help me open the front doors to do that or make sure they won't injure themselves when they fall."

Julius became visibly hesitant now and looked between her and the birds. When he turned to the doors, he took a deep breath and nodded his head, "You boys, come with me. Raina, stay here and wait till I call you."

She nodded as did the other boys before they soon followed Julius after he casted a swift spell on them. Moments later, there was a large gust of wind that blew the door open loudly.

"Raina! Now!"

She heard her cue and rushed out of the hiding spot. Doing so, the flock of sea eagles dove at her, but she stood her ground and placed her whistle on her lips. Counting down to the last second, she blew into her thin, gold whistle releasing a brilliant, sharp sound.

Almost immediately, all the birds that came at her swung around and returned to the rest of the flock.

One more.

She took a deep breath and blew into it again. The sound echoed in the large room and the birds nearly flew into the walls.

Again!

The sound echoed as the birds finally began to exit the room through the opened front doors till not a single one remained. She quickly took this chance and shut the door tight before taking a deep breath.

"What was that?"

She turned around and saw Julius hurry over to her.

"I didn't sense any magic, but you were able to send all the birds outside?!" Julius shook his head and his ecstatic look turned into a frown, "No. More importantly, are you all right?"

"Yes…" She managed taking another deep breath before smiling, "It took a little more tries than I intended, but I got them out."

"Amazing…"

She looked over and saw Salil walking over to them. She stood up in surprise, "Salil?"

The tall student smiled wide in pure awe, "This is the first time I've seen such magic!"

Raina forced a small smile, "That wasn't really magic. It's just the whistle. It helps me tame animals."

"Have you used it before?" Julius asked with a frown, "I don't recall you ever using it before."

She shook her head, "I practiced with the stray alley cats and little birds. This is the first time I've called an entire flock to listen to me, though. Normally, the little songbirds would ignore me."

"Then, today's cat?" Salil questioned curiously.

Raina shook her head, "I just coaxed it to come over. I don't use my whistle all the time, you know."

Julius chuckled, "You've always had an unusual connection with animals."

Yet, he frowned, "Does your parents know?"

Raina frowned too, "I showed it to mom and she really liked it, but dad might not like it too much… C-Can you keep it a secret from them?"

Though surprised, Julius nodded his head in confusion, "I don't see why Est wouldn't like it, but I'll keep it a secret."

She felt warm knowing that Big Brother Julius would do something like this for her. Julius have often visited her and her parents when she was very young. Often, it was to babysit her while both of her parents were away. Other times, it was to chat with them. Of course, he was apparently a nerd, according to others, but he was nice to her and would show her magic when she was still a child. Of course, those times lessened as she grew older, but he was very much like an older brother to her albeit the awkward times when he finds himself caught in his enthusiasm in front of her. Yet, she was surprised to have forgotten that he also works in the Black Tower on campus. It was sort of embarrassing since she also recalls stated situations when he finds himself in another idea regarding magic. However, this was the first time she had seen him at work. She was also slightly embarrassed not to have realized that he must've been here despite obviously talking about the Black Tower yesterday with Professor Ivan.

She wanted to talk with him more, but there was feathers to clean up and reading to be done. Julius couldn't stay and help since he had something to discuss with Professor Elbert, hence why he was present in the dormitories. Needless to say, the professor was neither thrilled nor too upset upon finding the mess. Luckily, Salil was there to help or she'd be stuck in the Main Hall for hours.

* * *

When she returned to the dorm, Sabrina was there waiting for her. When Raina explained what had happened, she was similarly shocked as Raina had been earlier.

"Sea Eagles?" Sabrina frowned.

"Yeah." Raina nodded, "Have you heard of them?"

"Sort of." Sabrina frowned, "There's some gruesome history about it, but let's not go into that part. Still, it is weird that they got into the school."

"I think so too." Raina nodded, "They listened really well when I used my whistle, so I don't know why they would do something like this. A-Also, could you please keep the whistle a secret? I don't really want my parents to find out about it."

She raised a brow, "Sure… Well, do you want to look into the book Fay gave you?"

"Okay!" Raina smiled.

As soon as she took out the book, she handed it to Sabrina. But, only seconds after looking through the book, she frowned, "I… I can't read it. I've never seen anything like this before!"

"Really?" Raina looked up in surprise.

From what she had seen, Raina knew that Sabrina was capable of understanding numerous languages. From the texts written in Ancient language to a book in Faranbald's literature. It was a surprise to see her struggle to understand this fairytale book. Sabrina looked to her in confusion, "Can I copy some of the words from this book?"

"That's fine." Raina nodded her head. '

"Thanks."

Once again, the serious look on her friend's face appeared as she began scribbling down the words.

* * *

It was the next day when Raina began preparations for her class that day. That day, she nearly entered the wrong class had Cole not seen her ready to open the door. It didn't take too long for her to finally find the correct classroom and opened the door. Once she stepped inside, she saw Professor Elbert already organizing the papers in the First Classroom. The room itself was large and had two long rows of long tables across from the chalk board. There was also a large bookshelf filled with many old books.

"Good morning!" She called out enthusiastically and more relieved to see that she didn't get lost again.

"Good morning, Raina." He smiled upon seeing her, "You didn't get lost on the way here, did you?"

"Huh?" Raina's eyes open wide, "Actually, I… did almost entered the wrong room."

The professor wore a small smile, "Well, at least, you found the classroom. Just be careful in the future."

"Yes!" She smiled with a nod.

"Well, shall we begin?"

"Sure." She nodded again.

The class was a little more difficult this time. Moreover, when she used her whistle to cast her magic on a potted plant, strange vines started to appear! Thankfully, she stopped in time before it could get a chance to go out of control again. When class was over, she sighed in relief, "Today was a little… intense. Sorry."

"It's all right." Professor Elbert wore a small smile, "It was a little startling."

"That's all my fault." She forced a small apologetic smile, "My magic is kind of dangerous and unpredictable. Sorry…"

"No! Not at all!" the professor quickly said putting down the claim, "Watching you is so exciting that it's hard to keep myself from stepping in and helping- N-No! I-I mean, I know you're trying very, very hard."

"Thank you." She forced a small smile, "but I still have a long ways to go."

Looks like the professor gets pretty flustered to see his students become depressed. The professor hummed for a bit before he smiled, "Oh! That's right. I could teach you something useful."

"Really?"

He nodded his head, "It was something I taught Lulu too and she used it quite often. I don't know if it would be just as useful to you, but I could explain the order of magic to you."

"Okay!" She smiled, "Please, tell me! I need to know as much as I can if I'm ever going to keep afloat here."

"Don't worry." he chuckled, "That's why professors like me are here to help. So, Raina, do you know the method to go through for magic to manifest?"

"Hm…" Raina frowned, "Taking you wand and saying the spell is only part of the processes. I need to blend six types of elements of magic with the spell, right?"

Professor Elbert nodded his head in approval, "Channeling your magic power through your magic tool completes the process. We call the entire process the order. It's similar to cooks. In order to create recipes they use ingredients, we, wizards and wizardesses, us the elements as our ingredients. In order for humans like us to use magic, we must always follow the order. It won't work if anything is out of place."

"I see." Raina noted with scribbles in her notebooks.

"Though, there are a few exceptions. If you're a wizard or wizardess like me with certain qualifications, you can cast simple spells without the need for a magic tool. It's possible to shorten the spells as well. With enough experience, the order gets etched into your mind and body… and allows you to do this."

He took a daisy flower from the vase and chanted a quick spell making it bloom beautifully in his bare hands.

"That's amazing!" Raina gasped as her feather pen dropped from her fingers, "I hope I can to that too someday…"

"I'm sure you will." Professor Elbert huffed a small smile as he placed the flower back into the vase.

"Then, I'll start by learning a lot of spells and I'll use this whistle as my magic tool!" she said wrapping her fingers around her gold whistle.

"That's all good, but you'll need more magical capacity too." the professor said with a frown of confusion, "Well, though learning knowledge, magic power, and technical skills in the courses we teach you, you'll be able to increase your magical capacity. If you lack the capacity, you won't be able to cast high-level spells. It's like you trying to cook on a tiny flame, it'll only come out half-finished."

"Then, I also need to increase my magical capacity and the elements too." Raina said with a frown, "Okay! I understand a lot better now. Thank you, Professor Elbert!"

"No problem!" He smiled, "I'm just happy to be of assistance."

Looks like Raina would have to study harder if she was going to use a lot of magic. Thinking thus, she mentally encouraged herself to achieve this goal. However, just as the professor called for an end to their class, there was a scratching noise and they turned around. Yet, the professor's eyes grew wide, "What? Is that..."

"Ah…," She gasped, "You're that cat from yesterday!"

The cat meowed as it sat on the window pane.

"Do you know the cat, Raina?"

She nodded, "I met it yesterday, but that's all. He's rather tame and I think he belongs to someone, though..."

The professor frowned, "Normally, animals and beasts aren't allowed in the dormitories. I wonder how this one got in…"

He walked over and opened the window as the cat slid in. It ducked under the professor's hands and lept right into her arms. And…

* * *

Here she was holding a cat on campus as she walked through the halls to the lake. Now, she was very, very worried about coming across the other professors. The cat looks rather curious as it looked from one side of the hall to the other and at the students quietly. She had never felt this nervous for the longest time as she rushed through the halls. As soon as she was outside on the stone path, she breathed a small sigh of relief and turned to the cat, "How did you get to the second floor? I know you're a cat, but what if you fall?"

The cat turned to her as if glaring. Sensing this, she couldn't help but mutter, "Ah, sorry…"

The cat was more quiet this time with very little noise. She thought it'd be quiet when a squeal could be heard from behind and she turned around. It was Alicia and her friends. She found it unusual that they'd be staring at her till she realized that it wasn't her that they were staring at, but the cat. Shelly and Cathy looked ready to pounce on the kitty while Elizabeth just stared at it with awe. Alicia looked very nervous, but not in a bad way thankfully.

"C-C-Can we pet it?" Alicia stammered carefully looking up to Alicia.

"I think so. He's pretty tame." she looked down to the cat who tilted its head slightly and meowed causing the fan girls to squeal.

Shelly and Cathy already jumped at the chance and softly petted the cat while Elizabeth stared at its tail. It wasn't long before Alicia joined in and they four had a fun time with the cat. When they were done, Alicia was the first to ask, "You said that the cat looks tame? Is it not yours?"

"No." Raina responded with a small smile, "I met it yesterday by the lake. Then, it showed up on the third floor window of Professor Elbert's classroom. Since pets and beasts aren't allowed without special permission, I'm taking it back to the lake. Besides, I think it has an owner since it has a scarf."

"It does look like it has an owner." Alicia noted with a frown.

"Maybe the owner is looking for it?" Shelly asked with a hesitant look.

Yet, the cat yawned and curled up in Raina's arms as if their talk had nothing to do with him.

"I'd like to put up notices for it, but I don't know when I can leave school grounds." Raina said with a look of confusion. She had only realized that she never asked when she was able to leave school grounds. She'd like to go visit her parents, but it probably wouldn't be possible since they had gone to visit her paternal grandparents this month. Now that she was also looking for this cat's owner, she might as well look into it.

"Nobody told you yet?" Cathy asked in surprise.

"Students can leave school grounds on the end of the week," Elizabeth replied bluntly, "but we need the professor's permission."

"You only need to ask one professor." Alicia clarified with a confident smile, "It's very easy to ask Professor Elbert for one."

"I see." Raina nodded with a bright smile, "Thank you for telling me this. Ah!"

Suddenly, the cat jumped out of her arms and dashed across the brick path.

"Wait!" Raina began running after it as she turned her head, "I'll see you later!"

The cat was fast, but she wasn't going to let that stop her as she rushed after the black cat. The problem with cats sometimes was that, if they don't like you, they'd turn and run. They're also pretty agile making it really difficult to catch, though that's their own benefit. It was only by luck that she found one so docile. It didn't take long before she found the cat up in a tree by the lake. It was the same tree that she was under when she had found it, in fact.

"Come on." She said with outstretched arms, "Everything will be all right."

Still, the cat meowed loudly and stayed in its place before curling into a ball. Troubled, she looked around only to find nobody there. She wasn't certain what else to do, so she got ready to climb. The moment she did so. The cat suddenly got up and jumped off the branch! She wasn't ready to let it get away, so she jumped off the trunk and ran after it towards the woods. It wasn't till something suddenly grabbed her arm that she turned around and saw him.

"Professor Hannes!"

She looked up in surprise as she saw the man with the feather hat. The professor smiled wide giving her the slight shivers as he said, "That's not good, Raina. These parts of the woods are off limits to students."

"S-Sorry." She replied nervously with a quick glance back.

"Leave the cat to me." he said with a smirk, "You focus on your studies, all right?"

"O-Okay!" she responded with a wide smile as he let go of her hand, "See you later, professor!"

He waved back as she made her way back onto the school ground, though very hesitant. As she walked back on the brick path to the school campus, she felt a pat on her shoulder as she jumped around.

"So, who's that guy earlier? Huh?"

It was another male student with light green hair tinted with blond streaks. He stared at her with a look of confusion, "You are…"

"I'm new here." Raina explained with a smile, "My name is Raina."

"Raina?" the man smirked, "Aren't you a kid of someone popular, then?"

She wanted to groan as she nodded, "Well, I'm nothing like my parents in a positive note, unfortunately."

"Huh. Really?" the man sighed, "That's a bummer. I was hoping you were Lady Omni's kid. In fact, I was really hoping she'd come back to teach at the school."

Hearing this, she wasn't sure if he was really getting his hopes up or just bugging her cause his words really does sting. Still, his words intrigued her.

"Huh? Teach at the school?" Raina raised a brow, "She used to teach here?"

"That's what I heard." The man shrugged, "Of course, it was only for a little while. After that, she suddenly resigned."

"I never heard about that before…" Raina hummed in confusion.

"But, I thought you weren't her kid?" the student raised a brow yet a smirk played on his lips.

Hearing this, Raina raised a brow and smiled, "But, I never said I wasn't."

The student stood still for a while staring at her in silence. It was for quite a while that she feared her words may have been a little too much, but that quickly vanished as a wide smile began to grow on his face. Laughter soon filled the air much to Raina's confusion. It went on for a while before he finally began to bring himself back together bit by bit as he wiped away a tear. Catching his breath, he was already hugging his stomach as he began to recover and smiled, "You're pretty interesting!"

Thinking he was weird, she was about to thank him when he suddenly continued, "The name's Lucas. Hope to see you around sometime! See ya!"

"Wh-! Wait!"

Despite her shout, he had already ran into the school building before Raina could stop him. She frowned in confusion before turning and making her way into the campus. Perhaps she could see him again next time. Though, she was uncertain if she really was looking forward to it.

* * *

When she arrived, a worried Sabrina was waiting for her just at the door.

"There you are, Raina!" Sabrina said with beads of sweat on her forehead, "I was hoping to find you before my next class started."

She looked as though she had been looking for her frantically.

"Sorry…" Raina managed nervously hoping not to anger her, "I-I was trying to find a cat."

"A cat?" her roommate raised a brow, "That reminds me. I heard that one of the professors found a cat."

"Yeah. I was there when it happened." Raina managed with a small smile.

"Huh." Sabrina smiled, "How did that happen?"

"Well, you see…" Raina began her long explanation.

When she was done, Sabrina frowned, "But, then it ran? And, the professor told you to come back? That's weird..."

Raina nodded her head with a sigh, "Yeah… I was thinking the same thing. I mean, I went to the forest just yesterday."

Sabrina frowned deeper, "Just what could this mean?"

Raina wished that she knew too.

_Thinking now, she wished that she had asked._

* * *

When her classes were over, Raina had hurried back to her dorm and organized the remainder of her luggage. Being thoughtful and kind, Sabrina said that she would save her a seat in the dining hall. So, she hurried over as soon as she was done changing into her casual short white dress, beige shorts, and sandals. But, just as she reached the Main Hall that stood between them and the dining hall, she spotted Paul looking around frantically in a striped blue and white t-shirt and blue jeans. It was unusual to see him act so frantic since he seemed rather relaxed most of the time. So, she walked over to him.

"Hey, Paul! Is something the matter?"

"Not really." he grumbled, "It's just… Have you seen Cole?"

"Cole?" Raina frowned shaking her head, "Not for the entire day, actually."

"That's not good." He grimaced, "I haven't seen him since class ended either."

"Do you need help?"

He shook his head with a weary smile, "It's fine. I can figure out where he is. I'll just lecture him when he gets back to the dorm."

"I see." Raina raised a brow, "I did think that the two of you were close friends…"

"Actually, we're friends and roommates." Paul said with a sigh, "I've known him a couple years before we started attending school and became study partners."

"Oh!"

"But, sometimes he does things that makes me wonder why he even attended our school…" Paul muttered with a sigh, "Sometimes, Sabrina and I worry about him. Speaking of Sabrina, I heard that she was going to wait for you in the Dining Hall."

"Oh, right!" Raina nodded, "I needed to hurry! See you tomorrow!"

"See ya!"

Dinner was great as usual, but, sometimes, it makes her miss her dad's cooking and the sweets in the nearby bakery.

* * *

The next day, Raina was suppose to pick out a favorite amongst the three classes she had taken: Knowledge with Professor Ivan in the headmaster's office, Magic Power with Professor Vania in the practice room, or Technical Skills with Professor Elbert in the first classroom. Needless to say, they were all difficult and going to one but not the other leaves a bad taste in her mouth. Yet, she'll have to make a decision…

She walked into the Headmaster's office as she said with a wide smile, "Good Morning, Professor Ivan! I'm looking forward to your class today!"

"You've decided to come to me?" Professor Ivan chuckled, "Haha… I commend your wise choice. Shall we get started?"

"Of course!" She nodded her head firmly as she braced herself for today's course.

A few hours must've passed when the lesson felt like it was about to come to an end. She breathed a sigh and muttered, "This is tough…"

"Let's conclude the lesson here for today." the professor nodded, "Remember to review and study for next time, understand?"

"I will! Thank you!" She smiled happy to hear that the lesson finally came to a close.

The professor chuckled, "You really resemble Lulu."

"Mom?" Raina looked to him in surprise.

"She also struggled in our classes from the beginning, but she became better." Professor Ivan nodded his head, "I believe you may be better than her in the future. Continue to work hard and we shall see."

"Yes!" She nodded her head with a wider smile and lighter shoulders.

As she walked through the halls, Raina looked around the school hall with a wider smile. It was still hard to believe that she was a student at such an amazing school. If her mother had not sent her here, she probably would've continued assuming otherwise. Thinking this, she muttered under her breath, "Mills Crea sure is an amazing school…"

She never thought that she would still be lacking so much despite being homeschooled by Mills Crea graduates. It's like saying that to become as great as the chef you idolize, you should study under the chef they studied under! Thanks to that, she's learned so much in just four days of school here.

"Yet, there's still so much more I need to study and I can't interact with many animals or creatures here." She sighed with a sudden change in her mood, "It quite sad if you think about it…"

Yet, everyone else is working just as hard to achieve their goals. If she feels this way now, she won't achieve hers, but it's hard to perk herself up when thinking how much further her dream is. Thanks to such mood, she didn't feel like returning to her dormroom, so she wondered the empty corridors leading with arches to the outside resting patio. She thought of studying in the library and tried to put her heart into it as she turned around and began to make her way there, but she bumped into a couple of people while doing so.

"Ack! What are you doing standing there for?! Is getting in Kris's path not enough for you?"

"I almost dropped my box…"

"You should look up when walking, you know!"

"S-Sorry, Alicia, Elizabeth!" Raina muttered in surprise and quickly helped the two up.

Despite her apology, she somehow got them even more angry when they began talking about Kris. She was only trying to say that it was an accident and that she didn't meant for her clumsiness to trouble them, but they seem to have taken it the wrong way and assumed that she was attracted to him. Needless to say, the group left in a sour mood and she was left more tired than she was sad. Moreover, she no longer felt like going to the library anymore. She began walking over to a nearby tree and sat underneath it hugging her legs close to her.

"I only got half a year and the classes are so difficult to keep up with. There's also the fact that I can't go to the forest either. Will I ever become this new type of wizardess I also hope to become?" She muttered under her breath, "Thanks to that fight, it seems like Alicia and the others still dislikes me."

She read from books how mean fan clubs of popular people are, but, from what happened yesterday, she felt that Alicia and the other girls weren't like that. Yet, it was becoming more difficult to become friends with them after what had occurred just minutes ago and how she said Kris seemed rather ignorant of those around him when that was just the slip of the tongue.

"Am I even going to make it?" She quietly whispered to herself as a tear accidentally escaped from her eyes.

"Hm? Raina? Are you hurt? What's wrong?"

She looked up in surprise and saw Salil staring at her with a look of surprise.

"You're crying…" he said in bewilderment.

"S-Sorry…" She blushed as she quickly wiped away the tear.

He shook his head, "You don't have to apologize. Are you okay? Are you hurt? Is it your stomach or-"

"N-No!" She wore a small smile, "I was just feeling a little down…"

"Depressed?" He raised a brow and sat down next to her, "Why?"

It must've been because they've met a couple times before or that she was introduced thanks to her mother's friend, but she felt comfortable around him enough to confide some thoughts to him.

"It's just," She thought how to best put it to words as she said, "I'm trying my best, but it feels like it's just not good enough… No where close to where I want to be at."

"No where close to where you want to be at?" He thought this for a bit before he smiled, "If it's you, I believe everything will be all right."

"Huh? How do you know that?" she looked to him in confusion, "You don't know what it is that I'm specifically worried about..."

"Of course I do." He smiled, "Basically, you're worried about not being able to do the things you can't do right now."

"Th-That's true…"

"With time, you can do what you can't do right now." Salil responded with a nod, "It's a really amazing thing. So, there's nothing for you to be worried over."

Salil nodded, "Just like what you did before. You said it yourself. How the little songbirds ignored you when you practiced taming them with your whistle, but you were able to tell all of those eagles where to go. You're improving because you practice and get better. My teacher used to tell me to imagine myself succeeding and you will feel better."

"Imagine myself succeeding?" She muttered quietly in thought. A grown woman putting on amazing shows with fellow animals she would get along with and work together. Doing so, a small smile gradually appeared over her face without her knowing it.

"See?" he smiled wider as he pointed out her smile making her blush redder.

"Th-Thanks, Salil." She forced a small chuckle, "By the way, you're from a foreign country, right? But, you speak our language so fluently."

"Ah," He nodded his head, "That's because my teacher taught me your language and magic before I started school here."

"You're new here too, then?" She said with a look of surprise.

He shook his head, "Every summer, I would return to my country and study politics under my teacher. He taught me so many things since I left home to pursue my goals under him."

"Bilal, right?" she looked to him in awe when he nodded his head, "That's amazing! I heard that he graduated from this school too!"

"He did." Silal nodded his head, "Thanks to him, I was able to pass my entrance exam a couple years ago."

"A couple?" Raina repeated in surprise, "I thought you looked rather tall to be in our year."

"You knew?" Silal raised a brow.

She nodded her head, "Julius told me a little bit about you. How you were in the same years as me and that you were the first person from Faranbald to pass the entrance exam on your own. I find that amazing!"

"You're too kind. It was a difficult exam still, but my teacher told me that your parents taught you magic, right?" Salil said with a smile, "It must've been easier for you?"

"A-Actually…" She forced a small smile before explaining her situation regarding her element and her magic. When she was done, she grew hesitant realizing that it probably wasn't the best of things to do.

But, he said with a look of surprise, "So, you don't have an element? But, you were able to tell those birds what to do."

"I said that wasn't really magic." she replied with a small smile and took up her whistle, "I've had this whistle for as long as I can remember. It was difficult to use it because it had a specific way to be used. When I started, I couldn't make any sound from it and the best I could do was make cats fall asleep till recently. I think it was the whistle that allowed me to do that. I didn't remember even using a bit of magic when I used it."

"Really?" He raised a brow, "May I see it?"

She nodded her head and handed it over to him. He looked at it with a raised brow and hummed loudly before returning it to her, "It's well-crafted. Most likely crafted by hand. I've never seen craftsmanship at this level before. Being a former smith apprentice, I know."

"Seriously?!" She muttered with a shocked look.

"Do you know who made it?"

She shook her head as she thought long and hard, "N-No… I know that I had it for a very long time, though."

"Though ordinary, the craftsmanship should have made it worth a lot." Salil said with a raised brow.

If that was true, why give it to such a young child?

Thinking thus, her head started to throb.

"Are you okay? Does your head hurt?" Salil said with a look of surprise.

He must've seen it on her face if he asked that. Despite being in pain, she forced a small smile and replied, "Y-Yeah… My head does hurt a little, but I'll be fine."

"Do you want to return to the dorms?" Salil said with a concerned face, "I'll walk you to the Red Beast Beyond The Glass?"

"Th-Thank you." She replied with a wider smile and got up with his help, "Also, thank you for talking with me. I don't feel depressed anymore…"

Hearing this, a smile returned to his tanned face as he nodded his head, "You're welcome. A smile does suit you better."

Uncertain what to say to such words, she forced a small smile and replied nervously, "Th-Thanks…"

* * *

Thanks to Salil's help, she was able to return to the girl's dorm and managed to walk back to her room by herself. She struggled with the pounding head for a while before she tried to continue studying for a bit, but her headache proved otherwise. In the end, she was forced to give up and went take a short nap. When she woke up, Sabrina was there looking at her with concern. Raina then reassured her that everything was fine and that she felt much better, which Raina sort of did. She then joined Sabrina for some dinner at the Dining Hall.

"Oh, Salil?" Sabrina nodded, "He's Bilal's pupil, for sure. Apparently, he's from a farming family and has many siblings. But, he usually leaves during the summer for unknown reasons."

"He did mention about leaving during the summers." Raina nodded her head curiously, "I wonder why too. I think it could be due to personal matters, though."

"Oh! You should try asking him to take a look at the book for you." Sabrina suggested with a smile, "Perhaps he might know something we don't."

"That's actually a good idea!" Raina nodded as she thought this, "He might be able to help."

"Good luck."

Raina raised a brow and turned around to the unexpected voice, but she saw nothing.

"Did you hear that?" She asked Sabrina.

"Hear what?" Sabrina frowned in confusion.

Though uncertain, Raina shook her head, "It's probably just me, then."

They went on talking about the rest of their day before and, thanks to the good food, her head started to clear up more too. Then, she talked with Sabrina and studied for a while before heading to bed on a more positive vibe.

* * *

It would be the last day she would be taking her special lesson with the professors then she could join with all her new classmates and learn magic with them. Thinking this, she was ready to give it her all. Since it would be the last day, she decided to go to Professor Elbert's class.

Though the class hadn't been easy, she was finally able to cast a spell and made a flower bloom in her hand just as Professor Elbert had done. Of course, what she was assigned to do was something else entirely, but it's not like she didn't study enough to not have passed that either.

"The cat ran away?" Professor Elbert said with a look of surprise, "Well, that's too bad, but I hope it safe now."

"Mh." She nodded in agreement, "I hope the owner found it. It's a really nice cat…"

"I agree." Her professor nodded in response and smiled, "It was quite taken with you too."

She forced a small chuckle, "I think I was the first person it met on school grounds."

"Perhaps." Professor Elbert nodded again with a wider smile, "Perhaps, you'll see each other again with its owner."

"I hope so too!" Raina replied and giggled, "I can't wait to see it with its owner. Well, I'll get going now!"

"Oh wait!" He called out to her and suddenly touched her forehead, "Sorry. I just heard that you weren't feeling well from one of my students yesterday… But it looks like you're doing fine…"

He smiled as he moved his hand away before reaching to his table and handing her a notebook with a picture of two pairs of bunnies huddled together.

"I also heard what you did from Julius while I was away." He smiled wider looking a little tense, "I-I heard that you like animals, so I wanted to thank you for protecting those students."

"Really? You didn't have to..." She replied nervously, "It's only natural to help others that are in trouble."

"I insist." He pushed the notebook to her gently, "Not everyone would have fixed the situation if I or the other professors hadn't been there. Not to mention, aggressive Sea Eagles are nothing to overlook. Had you not stepped in, those students would've been seriously injured."

"I-I see…" Raina barely noted nervously from seeing the professor's sudden serious expression and took the book, "How are those guys now?"

He smiled, "They're unharmed and well, thanks to you. They also wanted to apologize for shouting at you that day too. It would seem that they've finally cooled down a bit."

"That's good!" She smiled.

He chuckled and patted her head, "Now, you have other classes to get to, right? Good luck."

She nodded, "Yes! Thanks again!"

With that, she left the room with a wide smile on her face.

The rest of the class went by much easier thanks to her studies and, when she was finally done with class, she let out a sigh of relief as she stepped out into the hall from the Headmaster's office.

"I can't wait for next week." She said to herself with a brighter smile.

It was scary thinking that she might not be able to catch up with the rest of the class, but, at the same time, she felt that she was also going to do well if she keep on going. She can do it! She knew she could!


	3. Chapter 3: The Talking Mouse

The Talking Mouse

As she made her way to the Lake, she went along the corridor when she noticed a familiar face standing before the tall statue said to be of Fata Molgana. A tall stone figure with really long hair and long feather robe.

"Huh? That hair…" She raised a brow and walked closer to the purple hair boy, "It is him!"

She rushed over and called out to him, "I thought it was you! Hi, Ken!"

"Huh? Oh, Raina, right?" the purple hair man raised a brow.

"Yup!" She smiled, "What are you doing staring at the statue?"

"This? Well," He hesitated before he smiled, "There was rumors that this statue only talks to certain individuals. So, I came by to see how much of that is true."

"Really?" Her eyes widen in surprise, "How is it going?"

He shook his head with a sigh, "Nothing new apparently. It doesn't talk nor move… It's starting to feel like a waste of time."

"Oh." She wasn't sure what to say since it seems he was really interested in the statue.

Suddenly, he turned around and began to leave. Surprised, she asked, "Huh? You're not going to investigate further?"

"Nah." He said with a shrug, "I'm going over to the library and see how Palu is doing."

"I see…" She muttered curiously as he walked away.

"See ya!"

Then… he's gone.

Still, she was certainly curious and looked at the statue. It was a rumor, sure, but she's never heard of a talking statue before, aside from moving.

"Still, this is Mills Crea, a place that is full of wonders… Maybe I could try sneak out here and see if the statue actually talks…"

Just as she was about to turn around and hurry back to the dorm, She heard the sound of something rustling in the leaves and looked down. Her eyes widen in surprise as she saw a small brown mouse scurry out before her. Surprised, she looked down and watched it as the mouse also stared back at her. Curious, she muttered, "A mouse? I've never seen a mouse appear on its own before."

"And I never heard of a person talking to a mouse before." a voice said.

She froze as she heard this before managing a small gasp, "Wh-What..."

She looked around hurriedly, but no one was in sight.

"Yes, you heard me."

She looked back and saw the brown mouse… point at her with its small claw. Yes, point at her!

"D-Did you just talk?" Her face nearly pales to a white sheet as she stumbled back, "Ow…"

She heard a sigh and the voice again, "Was she just as clumsy before too?"

She quickly got up as stared at the mouse, "You… You just talked right?"

"Of course! Or do you see someone else here?" the mouse muttered before staring at her as his mouth moved along with his words, "What's your name?"

"R-Raina. My name is Raina." She replied as excitement slowly welled up as her voice nearly squeaked with it, "U-Um. What's your name?"

"I'm-" The mouse froze hesitantly before looking up at her again, "How about you pick one for me?"

"Pick one for you?" Raina raised a brow, "O-Okay…"

She thought for a while before she nodded her head with a wide smile, "Then, Kurt?"

"Wha-?! No." the mouse said bluntly, "I refuse to have that name."

"Huh?" She raised a brow, "But-"

"No." the mouse turned his head this time.

"O-Okay! Okay!" She said frantically hoping he wouldn't suddenly scurry away, "Then… Glenn?"

He breathed a small sigh but nodded his small head, "That sounds better, at least. First, Can you tell me where we are?"

"Huh? You don't know?" Raina raised a brow, "You're at Mills Crea School of Magic."

"School of Magic?" the mouse muttered in confusion, "Can you use magic?"

"Yeah!" She smiled and raised a whistle, "Though, I'm still not very good… B-But, I've gotten better! For real!"

"Oh?" the mouse looked to have smirked or something, "How?"

"W-Well…" She forced a small smile, "My magic doesn't go out of control that much now and my professor even said that I've gotten better too! Their classes was really difficult, you know. Just today, I finally got a flower to bloom in my hand!"

The mouse seemed to be rather quiet as it stared at her, "And, the whistle?"

"This?" She looked to it in confusion, "I've had it since I was little. I use it as my magic tool, but I can also use it to tame animals too. Um… I won't use it on you without permission, though…"

"Huh." the mouse shrugged, "Then, you're a student here?"

She nodded her head, "Yeah! This is actually my first week though. What about you? How were you able to talk and get here?"

The mouse hesitated for a long time making her wonder if she shouldn't have asked.

"It's fine if you don't want to talk about it!" She said quickly.

"Are you sure?"

She nodded her head firmly, "There are things some people don't want to talk about, right?"

"Is that so…?" The mouse said quietly, "Then, can I trouble you?"

"Huh?"

"Could you... find a safe place for me?" He asked in confusion, "I won't last long being out here for too long."

Thinking this, she remembered about the cat and nodded her head, "I would, but… Professor Elbert said that animals aren't allowed in the dorms."

"Can I trouble you to make an exception, at least?" He muttered nervously.

"I could sneak you into our dorms, but my roommate probably won't like that." She muttered nervously, "I don't know how she is with mice and, if the poupee finds you in the kitchen, something bad could happen..."

"I won't go into the kitchen." Glenn muttered firmly, "If you could bring me a small meal for my size then that good enough. I don't require much exercise either. Just give me a book to read for the day. A simple book on magic or history if possible. I also don't mind hiding as long as you have adequate lighting."

"O-Okay?" She raised a brow in confusion, "But…"

"I know you can do it, if you try. Please." the mouse bowed his head much to her surprise, "If I ever get caught let me explain myself to the headmaster or even the housemaster."

"I-I guess? But, it could be difficult to explain to Sabrina since we live in the same room."

The mouse sighed and nodded his head, "L-Let me talk to her, then. Just find me a place to hide for now."

"O-Okay? You can hide at this statue for a while. I-I-I'll be right back!"

She blindly went to find Sabrina and, since class was already over, it wasn't difficult to find her in their dorm. She quickly, and nervously, explained what she could to Sabrina. Sabrina also looked very, very hesitant, but, at least, she was willing to hear him out. The two snuck out of the dorm and to the statue where they found the mouse still safe and sound.

"So you're Sabrina?"

Sabrina almost shrieked aloud as soon as it spoke, but quickly gasped in shock, "It really spoke…"

"Could you hear me out without screaming?" Glenn muttered with a sigh in exasperation.

Sabrina nodded her head after looking around briefly. Glenn looked to have smiled a little before continuing with a straight face, "The thing is… I was a human at one point in time, but got caught in a witch's experiment. My home is in another country, it seems, and I don't know my way back."

"What?" Raina said with a look of surprise.

"I need to find a cure to change me back, but I'm worried that the witch might come to find me." Glenn replied nervously, "Giving out my real name is also out of the question."

Sabrina frowned, "We could talk to the professors, but a witch? What turned you into a mouse?"

"Some... form of powder." the mice replied firmly.

"I've heard of potions, but a powder?" Raina frowned in confusion.

"It's possible that one of the professors could be the culprit." The mouse said much to their surprise, "That and her accomplice."

"What?" Raina frowned.

"Raina, this could be a little much for us…" Sabrina said with a grimace, "How about we try asking your mother for help?"

"Her mother?" the mouse said in confusion.

"My mother is an amazing wizardess…" Raina said with a frown, "But, things like this, I wonder if she'll just tell me to try and solve on my own…"

"That can't be, but…" Sabrina muttered in confusion.

"Can I stay in the library, then?" Glenn asked, "I could try to find a solution to this."

"But, Palu is there…" Raina replied with a frown, "And, he's a phoenix the size of a rooster… He's also Professor Ivan's familiar, right?"

Sabrina nodded her head, "Yes. He has the duty of managing the library and the books. He'd probably try to catch you too…"

"If anything happens to him, Professor Ivan would also be the first to find out and I don't want to do anything bad to Palu either…" Raina said with a frown, "Also, won't we put the other students in a bad position if Palu falls asleep on the job?"

Sabrina sighed, "When you say it like that, it's probably better if he stays with us, then?"

"If you hide me in your pocket, nobody will ever know." Glenn muttered with a frown, "Just don't crush me."

"O-Okay?" Raina said with a look of surprise and looked around, "Um… I still have my bag on me, so this will have to do."

"Fine…" the mouse muttered.

* * *

With that, they were able to take the mouse back to their room and, for the mouse's sake, Raina was able to make a miniature room for him out of one of the wooden boxes used to hold her boots. She managed to cut a hole through it and create a small mattress out of cottonballs. While doing this, Sabrina's eyes glitter in awe, "It's like a doll house! That's amazing, Raina! You're so talented!"

"Thanks…" She replied with a small smile as the mouse also nodded with approval.

After it was completed, she placed the box under the table with another just so any other visitors wouldn't react with suspicion. When they were done, it was almost time for dinner. The left the mouse with a book and made their way down to the dining hall. After so much tension, they were finally able to relax as they had a delicious dinner before them. When it was over, Raina smiled, "That was great!"

"Yup!" Sabrina said with a wide smile, "Since it's a little early to go back to the dorms and we can't go outside, how about I take you to the recreation room?"

"The recreation room? We have one?"

"Of course!" Sabrina said with a wide smile, "I'll show you. Oh, but we should probably let Glenn know before he suspects us being out for too long."

"Right." Raina nodded quietly.

They quickly made their way back to the dorms and handed Glenn his bread and cheese for the day.

"Sorry. It was all we could take with us." Raina said with a small smile.

"It's good enough. Thank you." He took it and began munching right away.

"Raina and I will be going down to the recreation room." Sabrina said with a wide smile.

"Recreation room?" the mouse looked up in confusion, "May I come along?"

"Sure?" Sabrina raised a brow, "But, just try not to get caught."

He ran up and slid into the pocket of Raina's shorts after quickly eating his food.

Raina, herself, was also rather excited, "I can't wait to get to know more students!"

Sabrina giggled, "I'm glad to see that someone's excited, but I'll be there to talk over some ideas with our classmates..."

"It's fine." Raina smiled, "Glenn and I will be fine on our own."

"Okay?" Sabrina said with a hesitant look.

Just as they got ready to leave, Sabrina gasped, "Oh no! I forgot I have an assignment and test due by the next week! I'm really, really sorry, Raina!"

Sabrina looked really nervous, so Raina wore a small smile, "It's fine. Do you need help?"

"I think I can manage on my own." Sabrina wore a small smile, "Besides, I was told that I get really scary when I focus too much…"

"Scary?" Raina tilted her head in confusion, "Well, I'll go down to the recreation room myself, then. I'll tell you everything that happened down there when we come back, okay?"

"Thanks, Raina. Have fun!" Sabrina wore a small smile before turning around with slumped shoulders to open the door.

Raina frowned, "It looks like the assignment might be particularly difficult this time… I'd really like to help her."

"She looks to be the type who knows what's best for herself." Glenn said quietly, "Let's not disturb her."

"Okay…" Raina nodded before turning around and leaving, "I can't wait!"

* * *

Yet, by the time they were already at the main hall, she froze.

"What's wrong?" Glenn whispered quietly.

"I just remembered that I forgot to ask her where the recreation room is!" Raina whispered back quietly.

"You can't be serious!" Glenn groaned in astonishment.

"S-Sorry…" she replied meekly.

It was then that she felt a pat on her shoulder and quickly spung around in surprise, "Huh?"

It was Lucas! The boy now wore a more casual long sleeved shirt and jeans that looked beige.

"Hey, Raina!" the green and blond hair boy said with a wide smile, "I see you're here too, huh!"

"Oh! Hi, Lucas!" Raina smiled a little more relaxed to see that it was only him.

"Good." He nodded his head in approval with a smile, "So you remember my name. I'm glad. So? You were looking for something? To find that cat again?"

"Not this time!" She smiled, "I was trying to find the way to the recreation room. Do you know where it is?"

"If that's the case, I can take you there." Lucas smiled, "I was going there too. I can also show you the games everybody is playing."

"Cool! Thanks!" Raina smiled nodded her head.

Lucas chuckled, "Seriously, someone, like yourself, could easily go chase after a rabbit with a second thought."

"Wha-?! I'm not that gullible!" She pouted.

"We'll see." He smirked, "Let's go, then."

"All right!"

When we arrived, she was surprised to see that it was the place she had thought was the common room!

"So, this is a recreation room…" Raina muttered in surprise.

No wonder it looked so cozy.

"Everybody does their own thing here." Lucas said with a wide smile, "But, we just play Better Cards almost every time."

"Better Card?" Raina raised a brow.

"It's a pretty old game with traditions." Lucas smirked, "There're many others and Better Card is one of them."

As they walked, they came to a table with a familiar face as he continued, "If you want to know more about it, this is the guy you want to talk to. Heya, Paul!"

Paul turned around with a look of surprise on his face before he smiled, "Hi Lucas, Are you playing today?"

"Nope. But, she is. She's a newbie, so go easy, all right?" Lucas said pointing to Raina.

"Raina?" Paul smiled wider, "Hey! Are you interested in playing Better Card?"

"I actually don't know how to play it." She replied honestly, "But it's a school tradition, right? I'll give it a try."

"Great!" Paul laughed, "The more student that wants to play, the better!"

"Paul is the spokesperson of the Better Card Club." Lucas said with a wide smile.

"A job that nobody wants." Paul said with a sigh, "But, ask away and I'll explain to the best of my abilities."

Thus, she began asking questions. So, to make things simpler, it's a card game devised by the students and was made over a hundred years ago. To win, they need to fight with six elements cards and the last survivor wins. Apparently, it's an addicting game and nearly became a gambling problem once, so the BBC, that Paul is a spokesperson of, was made to prevent the mistake from happening again. So, apparently, everyone reveals one card from their hand of their own choosing and the strongest card wins. Basically, similar to how fire is stronger than earth or how water is stronger than fire. It was an interesting game, so Raina played with the for a while before returning to the dorms with Glenn. While doing so, Glenn spoke up, "Who was that boy with the bizarre green hair?"

"Him?" Raina smiled, "That's Lucas. He's a student here too. He's fond of pranks and mischief, but he seems to treat everyone else well."

"Is that so…" Glenn muttered, "And that cat?"

"Ah…" She smiled nervously, "It ran off on the day I found it in the school. Then, I met Lucas shortly after that. It was a really cute black cat, though."

"Huh." Glenn nodded, "I guess that's good?"

She wondered what he meant when he said that, but she was growing tired and just head back to the dorm and talked with Sabrina for the remainder of the night before going to bed.

* * *

The next couple of days was the weekend and she couldn't wait to explore the rest of the school! When she told the curious Glenn this, he decided that he wanted to come along too! Apparently, he also wanted to get to know the school better since he got here out of the blue. That was till a blue butterfly flew by.

"What's this?" Raina raised a brow.

"That's the Papillon Message." Sabrina replied after brushing her hair into its signature curls, "They're like magical letters you can send a short distance. Looks like that one's for you."

"For me?" Raina raised a brow, "I wonder who could it be from?"

She touched the butterfly perched on the table as it begins to shine.

"Good day, Raina. Are you enjoying your day off so far?"

"Professor Vania?!"

She froze and quickly snatched Glenn up behind her back as her professor stood before her.

"I'm sending you a pamphlet about how days off in Mills Crea are spent. Read it through and have your roommate fill in the gaps. Also, have a great day." her professor said with a wide smile.

As she finished saying this, the butterfly flashes again and disappears into thin air.

"Can't... brea..the!"

Raina gasped and gently placed Glenn back on the table. Glenn grumbled a few words before he finally asked, "What was that?"

"It's like a moving image of our professor." Sabrina wore a small smile, "She's not really here."

"Oh." Raina nodded in understanding, "So, she said pamphlet…"

"It's probably this one." Sabrina said handing over a folded piece of paper with pictures on it, "It was under the door."

"Thanks, Sabrina. Let's see!" Raina opened it up and her eyes opened wide, "What?! We're not allowed to leave the school grounds today? But, I thought all we needed with one of the professors' permission..."

"That's right." Sabrina replied, "But, we have to spend the first of the two days in the dorms. School grounds are fine too. They call it a rest up day, because magic uses a lot of energy."

"That makes sense." Raina muttered, "But, we can leave tomorrow, right?"

"Yup. Have you already asked a professor?"

Raina nodded her head, "Professor Elbert gave me permission to leave. What about you?"

Sabrina shook her head, "I'll be staying indoors. There's something I need to do."

"Aw, that's a shame…" Raina frowned thinking it must be homework, "Everyone has their own plans, so I should ask them first if they want to come with me."

"If you're going out, make sure you bring me along." Glenn spoke up, "You still need someone with you even if I'm not a human anymore."

"Okay, Glenn." Raina nodded with a smile, "Thank you!"

"If you want to invite them, it's easy by sending them a papillon message." Sabrina added, "I see. Thanks, Sabrina!"

Glenn suddenly cleared his throat, "And, how does she do that?"

"You use light magic and cast it. Have you never done that before?" Sabrina raised a brow.

Glenn shook his head, "Where I came from, there's few capable of using magic."

"That's kind of sad to hear…" Raina said with a grimace, "Magic can be quite amazing, you know!"

"Can you really use magic, though?" Raina nodded her head with a bright smile, "Yeah! Let's see…"

She looked around thinking of what to do when Sabrina spoke up, "Why not try a light magic, Raina?"

"A light magic?" she tilted her head in confusion, "That might be a good idea. It's safer than fire magic or water magic. Hm… I wonder if I can use that magic too..."

"Which one?" Sabrina asked raising a brow.

Yet, Raina was already reaching for her whistle and took a deep breath, "Lena Lumen. Show me thy flowers."

The white flower jewel linked to her whistle lit up as she chanted her little spell. All of a sudden, the room was filled with bushels of red roses that have yet to bloom. Seeing this, her heart skipped a beat as a wide smile appeared on her face.

"Wow!" Sabrina gasped in awe, "So many flowers…"

"This is…" The mouse muttered in bewilderment.

"I did it!" Raina could help it as a wider smile appeared over her face.

"Huh? Why are the flowers not blooming?" Sabrina asked in confusion.

"It looks fine like that." Glenn muttered with a sigh, "So, this is your magic."

"When it's balanced, yeah…" Raina muttered with a small smile.

"What does that mean?" Glenn looked to her in confusion.

"W-Well…"

"Raina." Sabrina said with a small smile, "It's great that you like it here, but don't you have someone you have to meet?"

"Ah, right!" Raina gasped as the magic also stopped, "Fay's gift!"

She hurried to the drawers and pulled out a large white box, "I'll be back!"

"Ah wait!" Glenn hollered and jumped into her pocket, "Don't forget about me!"

"Huh? O-Okay." She then rushed out the door.

As she made it through the red beast and to the main hall, Glenn whispered, "Where are we going?"

"What? Oh, the kitchen." She responded quietly, "I asked the poupee if I could borrow the kitchen to make some sweets for someone."

"For someone?" Glenn raised a brow.

"Yeah. You should stay inside my pocket if you don't want to get caught." She whispered.

"R-Right."

After all, a mouse in the kitchen is not a good situation of any kind.

When she arrived, Cole was already there much to her surprise, "Cole?! What are you doing here?"

"I heard that you were going to make some sweets out of fruit but lack some ingredients. I have some with me, like flour, milk, eggs, butter and baking powder."

"Milk, butter, and eggs?!" She gasped, "But aren't they perishable if out for long, especially here?"

"Paul and I made an ice box out of some clay and water. If kept cold, it could last for a good while." Cole responded with a chuckle.

"That's amazing!" Raina gasped in awe, "Then, can I use some of the ingredients to make something?"

"Sure..." Cole responded raising a brow, "But, um… how are you with cooking?"

"Huh?" Raina raised a brow, "I'd say I'm pretty decent. Since my mother still struggles with cooking sometimes, it's usually my dad and me taking care of the cooking and care for my younger sibling, but sometimes he's busy too."

"I see." Cole wore a small smile.

"Why?" she asked with a raised brow.

"W-Well…" Cole lowered his head, "Sorry, that was probably terrible for me to ask, but I heard from Paul that he had just remembered that you were possibly Lady Omni's daughter last night after a game of cards. It was terrible of me to jump to conclusions, even though you and her are different people. I'm really, really sorry."

"Ah…" Raina looked up slightly surprised but wore a small smile after, "It's fine. You didn't mean anything bad when you asked. So, I'm not angry. Ah, I know! How about let's make some small tarts?"

"Tarts?" Cole raised a brow.

"Yeah!" Raina smiled wider, "I got this really good recipe from a family friend."

"Interesting." Cole smiled as he rolled up his sleeve, "Show me, then."

Together, they began working. Cole watched as Raina began making the custard of egg, warm milk, vanilla, and sugar before putting it into the ice box in the Dining Hall's kitchen. Then, she began making the making the tarts with cold butter, flour, salt, sugar, and vanilla. As it went into the ice box with the metal cookie cutters, Cole raised a brow to which she explained, "So, that it keeps its shape and not collapse when baking."

"And the fruits?"

"I have some strawberries and strawberry jams that kept hidden." She replied with a wide smile.

Saying this, she began making the glaze. While the jam was boiling with the water and sugar, she baked the tart shells before starting with the actual fruit. Needless to say, she was glad that she and cole was the only ones here because the kitchen was starting to smell really, really good. She quickly began making the assortment as soon as the custard was chilled and the shell was done baking and cooled. When she was done, she had a few pretty and tasty tart ready. She quickly placed some in a pink box and a few in a smaller white box before handing the white box to Cole, "Here! Thanks for helping me bake these tarts."

"Huh? Are you sure?" Cole looked to her in surprise as he slowly took the box, "Will you have enough?"

Yup!" She nodded her head firmly with a wider smile, "I'd share them with all of my friends if I could, but I don't think we have enough ingredients or time for that and you and Paul did help me. So, it goes without saying that you should have some too!"

Cole smiled, "Thanks."

"No problem." she replied before cleaning up and taking the box back to the dorm room after thanking him again.

* * *

Sabrina had gone just as she said, so Raina put away her white box and took the pink box with her. Looking to her, Glenn asked, "Earlier, that Cole person talked about your mother. Is she famous?"

Raina looked to him in surprise and smiled, "Yeah. My mom and dad are both powerful wizard and wizardess. My mom, especially. She's been teaching me magic for as long as I can remember."

"And when was that?" Glenn asked curiously.

"Huh…" Raina took the pink box and walked out with a look of confusion, "I… I don't know. Just for as long as I can remember."

"I see…" Glenn muttered quietly, "I have another question if you don't mind."

"Go ahead." Raina smiled.

They waited as they passed the Red beast and to the main hall.

"If she was the one teaching you, why are you here at a magic school?" he asked, "Do they not have the time to teach you more?"

"No…" she wore a small smile, "My magic isn't that good, you see. We're having trouble since I can't use magic properly. My mom was really worried since she can't think of any other way to help me, so she asked her professor for help and sent me here. Looks like she may be right…"

"Raina?" Glenn called out to her.

But, she wore a small smile as they walked out the door, "I'm fine."

As they walked further to the school ground on the brick road, she continued with a small bitter smile, "Do you remember yesterday's game?"

She didn't know if he nodded or not, but she continued, "In reality, every human here has at least one of those elements in them. My dad, for example, has the element of darkness and yesterday Paul said that he has the water element."

"Could it be… the reason your mother is called this 'lady Omni'..." Glenn whispered quietly.

"Yeah…" She nodded, "My mom has all six elements in her. According to the professors who helped her, she started out as an innocent, a person without any elements, and made strong connections with her friends which led her to obtain all six. She's the first person in history to have all six elements in her. Elements are essential if you want to become stronger. Knowing which element you have helps you build up on it. But… the professors think I probably don't have one too, because my magic is just as chaotic as my mom's once was. That's why I'm here. To become better at magic and solve my problem. The professors are trying to help me too."

"So, that's it…" Glenn muttered.

She smiled wider, "Yeah! In fact, I'm really glad I could cast that spell this morning. I've been studying this entire week so I could wield my magic better. The spell was something my babysitter showed me once. Since then, I wanted to be able to use such magic and make others smile. I'm also practicing my taming skills so I could put on shows for them and travel around too!"

"Heh." The mouse chuckled, "Really… You're just like her…"

"Like who?" She raised a brow.

He cleared his throat and spoke up, "Someone I know, that's all."

Before she could ask him who, she quickly spotted the lake and smiled, "There it is!"

She hurried over as she looked around curiously, "Where is he…"

"Where is who?"

She nearly jumped up and spun around with a look of surprise.

"Fay!" she said with a look of surprise till she saw the look of confusion his face, "S-Sorry, my roommate told me who you were and where I could find you."

"Okay… Raina, was it?" He raised a brow, "What do you want?"

"I wanted to thank you for giving me the book, so I made some tarts for you." she said handing him the pink box of tarts with a smile.

"It's fine. You can have it yourself." he muttered with a sigh.

"You don't like sweets?" she asked with a disappointed frown.

"That's not it." He grumbled.

"Then, why?" she asked with a look of confusion.

"I gave you the book because I didn't want it anymore. Nothing more." he replied with a frown.

"But, I really like the book and it made me really happy." She responded with a smile, "So, I want to thank you!"

He looked to her with a frown, but he finally sighed and took the box before looking up, "You do realize that other could give you more sweets in return for your snacks."

"Really?!" She smiled wider, "Maybe we can start trading sweets and snacks, then!"

"That's not…" He groaned and shook his head with a sigh before giving her a small smile, "Nevermind. Thank you. Good bye."

With that, he took the box and left before she could say anything. She tilted her head in confusion, "Huh. That was fast. I guess he couldn't wait to try it or maybe I caught him at a bad time?"

"That's not it…" Glenn muttered with a sigh, "Well, if you're done, let's head back."

"That sounds like a good idea!" she smiled and began to make her way back.

* * *

It was only after lunch did she thought of going for a walk in the dorm garden and took Glenn with since he wanted to see the garden too. As they walked to get past the dining hall, she noticed a blurry purple painting hanging on the wall with a beautiful gold frame.

"Huh? What's that?" She asked herself and walked over to it curiously.

"What is it?" Glenn asked as she could feel him shift in her pocket.

"It looks like a painting, but the picture is so sloppy. Still, it has a very nice frame…" She muttered aloud in confusion, "Is this what art is supposed to look like?"

"I doubt that's a painting." Glenn said with a sigh, "What does it say on the bottom?"

"Oh!" She hurried looked at the base of the painting and read aloud, "Let's see…? 'When exposed to light magic, this painting will show the person dearest to your heart. Family, friends, or your sweetheart… See the truth with your own eyes.' This one's pretty interesting..."

"We have something similar back in my country." Glenn said.

"Really? Like what?" Raina asked curiously.

He sighed, "I'll tell you that another day…"

"Huh? O-okay?" she raised a brow, "Anyway, I'd like to try this when there's not so many people walking around… Haha…"

"That'd be for the best." Glenn nodded his head.

As she walked out, she noticed a familiar person huddling under the tree afar. She gasped as she recognized the flaming red hair against the sunset, "Livan!"

She hurried to the red hair student before her face overcame with a look of surprise. He was crouched on his knee while hugging something in his arms. His red hair was matted in sweat and his shirt and hood were soaked! But, what surprised her the most was the labored breathing coming from him and the painful look on his face.

"Livan?!" She called out to him in a panic and touched his shoulder, "Wh-What's wrong?"

She knelt down carefully with Glenn's safety in mind, but Glenn just jumped down from her pocket and climbed up Livan's leg.

"This…" Glenn said in shock, "Quick, we have to take him inside!"

"Huh?" Her eyes widen in confusion.

"Just do it!"

The raise in his voice made her jump as the mouse lept back into her pocket without wasting time.

"R-Right!" She said quietly and gently grabbed his arm only to notice how easily she was able to get him to put it over her shoulders, "L-Livan?"

He winced and scowled, but slowly began taking a step closer to the dorm as she slowly brought him into the dormitories. At the entrance, she was surprised when a voice spoke up, "Livan?!"

She looked up and saw Kris staring at them in bewilderment. Yet, it was at this time that she felt the student's weight suddenly grow dangerously heavy over her and she gasped, "H-Help…"

"R-right!" Kris muttered and quickly helped carry him to the boy's dormitories.

"Go get Professor Elbert!" he said before disappearing into the Green Beast Beyond The Glass.

"G-Got it!" She nodded and hurried to the house master's office.

* * *

Moments later, Professor Elbert was already rushing in and out of the Green Beast before quickly returned with a first aid box to her astonishment. Before he entered, he turned to her and whispered with a small smile, "I'm sorry, but could you go get Professor Ivan in the Headmaster's office? Don't tell anybody what happened."

"Y-Yes, sir!" She nodded and quickly walked out the door to the school.

When she reached the headmaster's office, she didn't hesitate when she heard Professor Ivan's voice letting her in. He looked to her with a frown the moment she told him what had happened. He told her to take a seat as he rushed out the door. It was then that Professor Vania was already there. She petted her head briefly and told her how everything would be all right before leaving the room after her brother. She was left alone in the room as Glenn got out of her pocket and said with a sigh, "He'll be fine, Raina. The wound wasn't deep. He'll be back on his feet after a few days."

"You think so?" she asked nervously, "I rarely see Professor Elbert use the First aid kit unless it was a small injury…"

"It was a shallow wound." the mouse said with a nod, "Since we acted just in time, he'll be fine. We'll see what happened after he feels better…"

"I-I guess…" She muttered quietly.

"Those professors were…"

"They're Professor Ivan and Professor Vania." Raina said with a small smile, "They teach us magic here with the rest of the professors."

"A child?" the mouse shook his head, "No, that didn't felt quite right…"

Raina smiled, "Professor Ivan only looks like a child, Glenn. He's actually much older than that."

"You're certain?" Glenn muttered in bewilderment, "Is this really logical?"

Raina giggled, "This is Mills Crea. A school of wonders and magic. I'll tell you more about it later. I just hope Livan is okay…"

"So, you know him?"

She nodded as she looked up to the empty room, "I saw him arguing with Palu the first time I went to the library this week. He accidentally pushed me down the stairs in a blind rage and, if Fay hadn't been there, I would've gotten really hurt. Livan apologized profusely when he realized what he did and offered to help me find my books for me. He also taught me the organization of the books and how Palu helps us in the library on that day. I can't say that he and Palu get along, but I know he's actually really, really nice. It was just bad timing that day."

"So, that's it." Glenn nodded his tiny head quietly.

"What's going to happen now?" She wondered aloud.

"They'll probably start asking for your side of the story since we found him there." Glenn spoke up, "Don't tell them about the wound that I told you about though or they could suspect you with information you supposedly don't know about. I was the one who saw it, after all."

"I-I see..." she replied in confusion.

Moments later, he suddenly rushed into her pocket just as the professors returned. As Glenn said, they asked her for her side of the story to which they nodded their head and eventually allowed her to return to her room.

* * *

After all that excitement, she was completely drained and exhausted. So, as soon as she noticed Professor Elbert leaving the room and told her that Livan would be able to return to school in the next few days, she let out a sigh of relief and thanked him before returning to her room where Sabrina waited. She told her what had happened and shared similar feeling of shock and worry before she said with a smile, "How about let's go read that book again tomorrow night? I think we can figure out something."

"Sure." Raina nodded her head with a small smile, "Thanks, Sabrina."

"It's no problem. I'll be busy again tomorrow, so it's the least I can do for a friend."

Needless to say, she wasn't certain if she should feel guilty or not as she drifted off to a deep slumber that night. She didn't even remember what Glenn did after that, but he probably just pulled out a book and sat by the lit lamp into the night. He was certainly a book worm for sure.


	4. Chapter 4: Outside

Outside

It was morning when another papillon butterfly drifted into the room.

"Good day, Raina!"

Professor Vania appeared with her usual pleasant smile.

"Now, I know you must have had plans today, but, before you do, could you stop by the headmaster's office. It would seem that Livan rescued a black cat yesterday and we discovered that he might not have a home, after all. We thought of putting this child with Professor Elbert, but he recommended a certain person instead. We were informed that you may be the best choice to be entrusted with the responsibility. Just come to the office so we may talk this over and gi-"

There was a sudden cat screech in the back as Raina thought she could hear a cry or scream in the background. Yet, Professor Vania wore a mischievous smile as Palu's screech echoed in the background too.

"Now, where were we? Oh, that's right." Professor Vania giggled, "Now normally, we _do not_ allow animals or beasts in the dorm without permission, but, with the recommendations of a couple professors... we could make an exception... So, please do drop by the headmaster's office toda-"

"Vania-! Ow!"

"Yes, yes…" She sighed glancing over to the side, "Oh dear, why must I have him as a brother…"

She turned to them with a smirk, "I hope to see you soon, then~!"

The butterfly then disappeared as Raina looked to Sabrina with a look of surprise, "That was… interesting? Was that Professor Ivan in the back?"

"Um… we should double think about getting a cat…" Sabrina said nervously glancing over to Glenn sitting on the bottlecap Sabrina brought from the Dining Hall.

Glenn sighed with a long thought before he looked up to them, "As long as he stays away from my resting spot, then he can stay."

"Huh?!" Raina's eyes widen in surprise.

"Are you sure?" Sabrina looked to him in surprise, "I mean, what if it-"

"I think I know who that cat is…" Glenn grumbled, "Though we don't get along, I believe he's an aquaintance of mine… but let me make this clear. He can't talk, like me."

"What?!" Raina looked to Sabrina with a look of confusion.

However, Sabrina could only respond with a shrug in confusion. There was a long silence in the room.

* * *

Well, here she was in front of the headmaster's office as cat screams could be heard coming from the room. After knocking on the door, she could hear Professor Ivan let her in before a crashing sound could be heard. Worried, she opened the door to find an unusual sight. Professor Ivan was sitting on one of the couches as usual, but he was hugging Palu in his arms as the bird struggled to peck at the black cat with the green scarf! Professor Vania was somehow barely able to keep the cat at bay with surprising a bit of trouble. Was a fight between a cat and a bird this difficult to separate even with magic?!

"Um…" She called out hesitantly as she caught their attention.

The cat heard her too and spun around before jumping into her arms. She gasped in surprise as the cat began purring in her arms.

Professor Vania breathed a small sigh and smiled wide, "I see this child has taken a liking to you. Wonderful!"

Professor Ivan only sighed and turned to Raina with a wide… scary smirk, "Have you come to a conclusion?"

"Um… Y-Yes!" Raina nodded looking to the cat with a smile, "Sabrina and I don't mind looking after the cat."

"Very well." Professor Vania smiled, "The dear cat seems to adore you from the start. Till we find him a new home, he shall remain with you."

"However," Professor Ivan interrupted with a hint of glare to his younger sister before turning to Raina firmly, "The care of the cat is entirely in your hands."

"O-Okay." Raina responded nervously.

Professor Vania giggled, "Since it is unusual for a student to be recommended by a professor _and_ staff in the Black Tower, we'll make this an exception and allow you to care for this cat in the dorm. However, should it become trouble, we would have to hand it over to Professor Ivan, understand?"

"Y-Yes!" Raina nodded again hesitantly as she tried to figure out how it could be.

"That reminds me…" Professor Vania said with a raised brow, "I was told that you had lost the cat in the forest, but a professor had stopped you?"

"Yes…" Raina responded slightly more nervous, "H-He told me that the forest was forbidden for students to enter and that he would help me look for the cat."

"There are some places that forbid student entry." Professor Vania said with a small smile and glanced over to her elder brother who hummed aloud.

It took a while before he asked, "Who was the professor?"

"Professor Hannes." she replied curiously.

Were they going to question him about the situation with the cat?

"Professor Hannes?" Professor Vania raised a brow, "Could he be a new professor? We do have a couple this year..."

She nodded her head, "Professor Hannes told me that he was recently hired to teach at Mills Crea."

"So that is how it is." Professor Ivan nodded his head and smiled picking up on of Palu's feathers that drifted onto the coffee table, "That is all I would like to ask from you today. Take care of the cat and keep it away from the Library and Palu. It would seem they are not on good terms."

"Okay!" she nodded with a wide smile.

After leaving the room, she looked down to the cat and smiled, "Since we'll be living together, I hope we get along!"

The cat meowed and purred loudly in her arms.

* * *

Raina smiled as she brought the cat in.

"I'm back, Sabrina! Huh?"

She looked up and saw that Sabrina was no where to be found. Instead. Glenn crawled out onto the table and grumbled, "So it was you…"

The cat meowed loudly and seemed to have looked away to which Glenn just sighed, "Never mind that. It's better than a stray alley cat."

Raina raised a brow and said curiously, "The cat… understands?"

"He's had experience becoming a human before so of course he does." Glenn replied with a sigh, "Unlike me, he was originally a cat from the start and has a cure from becoming human. He's a familiar of an acquaintance, but that's just it. He can understand you just fine if you talk to him normally."

"Really?!" Raina looked to the cat in surprise, "So, you knew what I was saying the whole time? Then… why did you ran off? And, what are you doing here?"

The cat meowed loudly to which Raina turned to Glenn who seemingly scowled before heaving a sigh, "Just because I'm a mouse does not mean I can understand the language of a cat."

"R-Right…" Raina forced a small smile, "Sorry."

"So, what are you going to do now?" Glenn said curiously, "Sabrina left on some task for the day."

"That's right…" Raina said with a look of surprise as she quickly remembers their current situation, "I was thinking of heading to the town so I could get some supplies for the cat. Also, what is your name?"

"Just give him a name." Glenn said with a sigh, "It's too dangerous for our names to be known everywhere."

"O-Okay?" Raina replied with a confused face before staring at the cat.

The cat stared back at her with expecting eyes.

"S-S…" she muttered with great concentration, "Silver… Yeah! Silver!"

The cat purred quietly as Raina giggled and screatched the silver marking on his head, "I guess he likes it."

She turned to Glenn and smiled, "Since we're heading to the city, let's go together. Oh! But, will Silver run again?"

Glenn sighed and just jumped into her pocket before looking up to him, "If you run, we'll have to spend the whole day after you. So, don't make us waste so much energy."

The cat hissed much to Raina's surprise.

"Woah!" Raina's eyes widen before she struggled a small smile. This will be another long day…

* * *

Since she couldn't go out in her casual clothing, she changed into her uniform and grabbed her small red pouch where she gently placed Glenn in. She breathed a long sigh finally able to let lose of all the built up stress over the week and walked out of the school grounds and into the street. There was pleasant lines of homes and extravagant gardens. Some of which she didn't remember seeing before she left for school. As they made it to the main plaza filled with many stalls and stores, Raina smiled, "This place is the main plaza of Latium."

Once again, it was bustling with people and a large pretty fountain sprays streams of water that swirl through the air by magic. A couple crossing their arms, an elderly man feeding the pigeons with a woman, and children running around playfully on the brick road. Today was certainly another good day.

"So, this is the plaza." Glenn muttered quietly before speaking up, "Raina, the water from the fountain. Is that magic too, then?"

"Yeah." Raina nodded with a wider smile, "It's done so by magic. In fact, Latium is said to be the city where magic gathers. It's full of things you don't see everyday outside of the city. The weather is also controlled and a barrier that protects the city. It's almost always sunny and never too warm."

"Interesting." Glenn muttered curiously, "But that would mean you've never seen the snow before."

"I have." Raina giggled, "My grandparents live outside of Latium and I would go visit them on some days. It snows there too during winter and it's really nice. Oh! Macarons!"

She hurried over to a stall and saw the macarons piled up high. She smiled wider and giggled, "I haven't seen the macarons made by Miss Martha in a while."

"Do you want them?" Glenn asked.

"I do," She wore a small smile, "But, I also really want to visit my parents first, but there's also Silver's supplies and need to get. So, I should probably stop by Sol-!"

"Give it back! I waited two weeks just for this!"

"Huh?" Raina looked up in surprise, "That voice…"

She looked around till she saw the two figures sitting in front of a small classy cafe.

"I know you like steak and they are delicious, but, if that's all you ever have, you won't get any taller."

It was Salil and Ken seemingly arguing over some food.

"What are you saying?! This is as tall as I'll get, of course. So, give it back!" Ken scowled and reached for the plate of steak.

"Do you recognize them?" Glenn asked, "They have the same uniform as you."

"Yeah." Raina nodded, "Salil and Ken are both friends of mine. I heard rumors that they were roommates, but don't get along well. Yet, however you see it, they get along so well. I wonder what's going on."

She walked over to them and called out, "Ken! Salil!"

Salil looked over with a readily smile, "Ah, Raina. Are you here for some food too?"

"No." Raina raised a brow as she watched Ken try to take advantage of the moment to snatch back his steak but fail, "I heard your voices so I came over to see what was going on. You two seem to be getting along really well."

"How does this look like getting along to you?" Ken glared at her.

"You're right." Salil smiled wide, "We get along really well. Would you like to join us, Raina?"

Raina looked to the cat to which cried happily and smiled, "Mhm! Sure! Thanks!"

With one arm, Salil easily pulled out a chair for her with one hand while still keeping the dish of steak far away from Ken with the other.

"Isn't this table getting smaller?" Ken grumbled as he sat back down having given up.

"Don't listen to him." Salil smiled, "The more people, the merrier as the saying goes."

Ken doesn't say a word as the steak was returned to him and quickly began munching away on the food.

"I was just getting hungry too." Raina said with a wide smile before staring at the sandwiches laid out before her, "And, that's a lot of sandwiches… You guys sure can eat a lot!"

"Yes…" Salil said with a sigh, "We were trying to get a new bed frame for Ken after something occurred last week, but we had some trouble while getting there."

"Trouble?" Raina tilted her head in confusion.

"Latium has a lot of people. While we were entering the plaza, Ken turned into a dragon." Salil replied with a small smile

There was a moment of pause before Raina asked nervously, "Um… Salil."

"Yes?"

"But, I heard that Ken's element is wind…" she questioned nervously.

"That's correct." Ken said with a sigh after gobbling several sandwiches after his steak, "But, one day, I suddenly became a dragon. I had no idea I was part dragon. So, I came here to find out what to do about this problem."

"You didn't know?" Raina raise a brow.

"I live by myself for as long as I can remember." Ken responded with a sigh, "Sure, I wanted to come here for a really long time, but not under these circumstances. Moreover, I couldn't even use fire spells well, so it's a mystery how I can under this condition."

"So, that's it…" Raina muttered quietly to herself.

Salil nodded, "When he transforms, he gets very hungry. That's why we have so much food."

"That explains why he raised voice." Raina said with a small nod.

Ken sighed and began munching away on the sandwiches while trying to avoid see her, "So, about the cat…"

"Oh, right!" Raina looked up in surprise with a small smile.

She told them what had happened that morning which surprised the both of them. When she was done, the patelkibus she had ordered had arrived. They were basically sandwhiches with any kind of stuffing one wants inside and have been the most popular here since her own mother was a student.

"So, you're taking care of Silver now?" Salil said with a wide smile, "You certainly are the right person to be given the task."

"Th-Thanks…" She said with a small blush of embarrassment.

"By the way, how's your extra lesson going?" Salil asked.

"I don't have to take extra lessons starting next week, so that's a relief. I'd say this week went without a hitch." she replied with a bright grin, "Thank you for cheering me up that day. I was able to get back on my feet again."

"You're very welcome." Salil replied with a chuckle, "I'll be cheering you on from here on too."

She nodded, "Starting next week, I'll be taking regular classes, so I have to try harder!"

"Is it necessary to be cheered on?" Ken grumbled with a grimace, "If you lost motivation, doesn't that mean that it's not suited for you?"

"I don't think so." Raina responded, "Losing motivation isn't a sign that you shouldn't pursue something you want to do or be. At least, I believe that it's just one of the obstacles to achieve your goals. Becoming a wizardess and working with animals have always been my dream since I was little, but there's still many hurdles for me to overcome. So, it sometimes gets depressing thinking that you can't achieve something just because of how high the obstacle is."

"Weirdo…" Ken muttered with a sigh before returning to his meal while ignoring Silver's hiss.

"Huh? Did I say something weird?" Raina raised a brow.

Salil laughed, "Not in the least. He's simply moved by your words."

"As if!" Ken snapped before taking a deep breath and slumping back into his seat, "I just wanted to learn more about dragons…"

"Really?" Raina said with a look of surprise.

Salil nodded, "Indeed. Also, dragons are high-level creatures and aren't fully understood yet. Mills Crea has the most advanced research facility and knoweldge than anywhere else, so coming here is like taking a shortcut to solve the problem."

"I see…" Raina nodded her head slowly.

"I don't know if it was a waste of time, though." Ken said with a sigh, "The last half-dragon student that came here couldn't even use magic, but I can use it just fine. Instead of finding answers, I'm just finding more questions."

As he said this with a sigh, Raina wore a small smile as she put down her apple tea, "I-It's okay, Ken. Even if you struggle now, I'm sure you'll get better little by litt-!"

"Pay attention to what people tells you!" He snapped angrily, "The last person can't even use magic, yet here I am capable of using magic physically!"

"Huh?" Raina's eyes widen in surprise and barely held back Silver before he launched himself at the student.

Pusing hs roommate back in his seat lightly, Salil sighed, "Half-dragons aren't the same as regular humans. The order for his magic is suppose to be different on a fundamental level. Humans possess all six elements. The biggest amount of the element is their primary element. Ken, as a dragon, should only be able to possess Wind if that had been his element. Nothing else. Yet, he was able to use all six elements just fine."

"So, that's it…" Raina raised a brow, "Huh, I wonder why that sounds so familiar… Half-dragons are only able to use one element…"

Ken sighed after having his last sandwich and laid his head on the table in weariness, "Forget it. I'm too tired to think today. I'll just take a quick nap."

As he said this, Raina raised a brow. Salil smiled and continued, "Half-dragons may not be able to use magic, but they do have high resistance against magic, so most spells are ineffective on them. At least, Ken has that."

"That's good news." Raina smiled wide, "I've always thought Latium has many incredible people and things, but Mills Crea is even more so."

"Yes. People from all over the world gather at Latium and Mills Crea." Salil nodded his head and glanced over to his roommate, "One of the oddities being Ken, but there are more."

"You're one to talk…" Ken grumbled, "Your country had only just accepted magic and here you are. Faranbald's first citizen to become a student in this school in less than three years after their second prince graduated."

"That is amazing." Raina muttered impressed, "You must've been here the longest, then!"

"My whole country is still suffering from shortage of water, and it would seem that magic is really the only way to address the problem. There's always been a drought for many years, but these past few have been especially harsh." Salil said with a small smile, "Prince Bilal is trying to help us, but I fear there would be a limit to what he can do. Yet, it was a thrill to know that there was actually a solution to this problem and it could potentially save my family who relies on water as farmers. When I left, my parents were against my decision. Only my six siblings supported me, though some were a little too young to understand the weight of the matter. Faranbald has only just accepted magic, so there are still many who are against it, such as my parents. But, I left my hometown to help Prince Bilal stop the drought after seeing him bring back water in our wells. When he learned that I had the water element, we immediately began preparations for the entrance exam into Mills Crea. Prince Bilal helped me with the majority of the preparations. Now, I need to find a solution to the drought back home, hence my travels back during the summer."

"That's amazing…" Raina muttered in awe, "You two both have a tough time."

"The same goes for you as well." Salil said with a wide smile, "It's not often for someone to have no element, but you're improving really well. I believe you'll eventually uncover your element with time."

She smiled, "Thanks! We'll work hard, do our best, and get through this together!"

"Sure…" Ken muttered with a yawn, "So loud…"

Salil nodded with a wide smile, "Let's all do our best together."

"You shouldn't be encouraging her…" Ken muttered covering his ears.

It was a fun conversation and seeing the two get along well brought a brighter vibe in the air.

* * *

By the time her takeout arrived, she resumed her walk around the plaza.

"So, there are dragons here too." Glenn grumbled.

"Yeah." Raina nodded with a wide smile, "They're dignified creatures and are widely respected for their wisdom. I was surprised to learn that Ken was a half-dragon, though. Too bad, we caught him during the worst time. Anyway, is bread, cheese, and ham all right?"

"With that size, it is more than enough." Glenn nodded his head.

"I'll have to ask Cole and Paul how they made the Ice Box." Raina muttered out loud, "If we can made that, we won't have to go back and forth to the dining hall and I can store ingredients too."

"Raina." Glenn called out, "That Bill Board… the menu…"

"Ah," She nodded, "Lunch is over, so the billboard automatically changed the menu from Lunch to dinner."

"In-Incredible…" Glenn muttered in astonishment.

Though surprised by his honest statement, Raina smiled as she looked about till she came upon a narrow alley, "I think this should be it…"

She entered the alley and saw a strange shop surrounded by an eerie atmosphere which only made her more curious.

"I can't believe this! What kind of shady shop insults its own customers?!"

She looked up in surprise as Alicia and the girls marched out of the store.

"Totally!" Shelly nodded her head with a scowl and walked out.

"Elizabeth, are you ready?" Cathy called out to the blond girl that ran out after them, "Did you get what you wanted?"

"Yeah!" The little girl responded as she rushed out after them, "Let's get moving!"

It was then that the girls saw Raina as they made their way in her direction just while noticing her figure… or perhaps...

There was a squeal of delight escaping from Cathy's lips as she was the first to jump at the chance, almost literally, and immediately began petting Silver.

Raina forced a small smile as she grew nervous recalling their last encounter. Still, she knew this would happen with Silver in tow.

"Oh? What are you doing here?" Alicia said with a raised brow despite being captured under the cat's presence.

"I was just wandering around Latium and happened to come this way." Raina said holding back a sigh of relief before looking over to the shop, "Did you just come from this shop?"

"Yeah." Shelly said as she busily scratched Silver's chin, "They sell magic items, but they're all bogus, though..."

"Shelly! Why did you tell her that?!" Alicia gasped upon realization, "Don't be nice-!"

"Alicia, hold on! Lend me your ear for a second!" Cathy said as she jumped up and rushed over to their leader.

"What is it, Cathy?" Alicia asked with a look of confusion.

The three began quietly whispering to each other as Shelly continued to absentmindedly pet Silver. When they were done, Alicia nodded her head with a bright smile, "That sounds like a good idea."

"Um, what?" Raina raised a brow.

"I changed my mind." Alicia said with a bright smile, "Since I'm such a kind person, I'll tell you all about it."

"Huh?" Raina looked to the in confusion, "You… will?"

"Of course." Elizabeth nodded firmly with a grin, "This shop is called Salo-mon Witchcraft Supplies. It's a wonderful place hugely popular among students."

"Oh my! Could you tell us what kind of lovely goods we can find inside?" Cathy asked with an 'overly-bright' and strangely convincing smile?

"Inside you'll find odd-" Alicia cleared her throat quickly in near panic before continuing with her smile, "I mean, oddly useful magic items to improve your student life!"

"Um, really?" Raina looked to them in surprise.

"But everything must be pricey…" Shelly muttered as she watched Silver yawn before looking to them in confusion, "...right?"

"Not everything, my friend." Elizabeth said with an elegant smile, "You might find bargains inside so cheap, you'd think it was a mistake!"

"My goodness, what a find!" Cathy jumped on her toes with a delighted expression, "I can't wait to go shopping inside!"

"Does every purchase comes with free items?" Shelly asked with an even more confused expression.

"Huh?" Raina said with a look of confusion, "Is this shop really that great of a place? I don't understand…"

Cathy laughed, "Of course, it is! You'll find it's surprising in more ways than one."

"Interesting." Raina looked to the store, "I guess I should go see, then."

"You certainly should!" Alicia nodded her head enthusiastically, "You must see for youself to believe it!"

"We'll be on our way now." Cathy said with a wide smile, "Enjoy the rest of your weekend!"

"Tell us how much you liked it later!" Elizabeth said with a big smile like a little girl before grabbing Shelly's arm and whispering harshly, "C-Come on, Shelly!"

Strangely enough, it looked as though Shelly was about to return to the store even though they had just came out of it. Yet, it didn't take that long for them to disappear around the corner either. Still, she gave them a wave before muttering in confusion, "They were so mean the other time, but today they're all so nice. I know Alicia wasn't a bad person, after all!"

"Hold it!" Glenn called out making her halt in her footsteps before she could enter, "This sounds a little suspicious, don't you think so? Can you really take their words as it is?"

"Huh?" Raina thought for a bit before continuing, "Honestly, I don't think they'd lie. I mean, this shop does have sales on certain days, you know."

"Uh, what?" Glenn looked to her in confusion, "Raina… Do you know this store?"

She nodded her head with a bright smile, "Yup! My mom used to take me here as a child all the time! The clerk is rather unique, but really welcoming once you come to understand him."

"And what that girl said about the items being 'bogus'…" Glenn brought up curiously.

"Well, sometimes, the products they sell are just replicas, but not everyone can tell what's real or fake." Raina said with a wide smile, "But, most of the time, those things are on sale, so it's mostly quite all right. The only problem is that the clerk doesn't want to tell us sometimes for his own amusement, but, most of the time, it's the miscommunication between. Haha! You'll see."

With that, she walked into the store and saw the usual shelves of products ranging from cute pink earrings and wands to use as magic tools to strangely designed or even creepy paintings and mirrors about as tall as Raina. Most of which she knew must've been magic items. There was a strange vibe coming from directions, yet it wasn't as creepy as when she first came to this store. Rather the small store was very nostalgic to her. It made her remember how close she was to home too since this was the one stop her mom was make before they returned home from their errands. Silver was strangely looking around the room to her confusion as Glenn also seemed pretty silent. She wasn't too sure why either, but walked up to the wooden counter where a large and strange mask. She smiled, "Hi! It's been a while."

"Not welcome."

As it said this, the lips of the mask moved simultaneously nearly making Glenn choke on something and Silver arch his back. Raina forced a small chuckle, "Th-Thanks. I brought some friends with me today. I know most animals aren't allowed in the store, but this cat and mouse are… familiars. Well, they're not mine. I'm taking care of them for the time being."

The mask was quiet before he said, "Not scary."

Raina managed a smile, "Apparently, they came from a place where there's very little magic. But he's right, guys. He's actually not scary."

"So you say…" Glenn muttered quietly.

"Not ordinary." the mask muttered.

"You can say that again." Glenn grumbled nervously before hiding in her pocket.

"May we take a look at the things on that shelf, Mr. Mask?" Raina asked pointing over to the gray pillow and green food bowl on one of the shelves.

"Not a chance." the mask responded.

"I can't?" Raina muttered in confusion when she remembered Sabrina working hard back in the dorm, "Then, can I get a souvenir for my friend?"

"Not unbuyable." the mask responded, "Not unchoosable."

Two items began to appear on the counter as usual. One of them being a purple flower and the other was a hairband with really realistic cat ears on it!

"Not unsellable." the mask said.

"What does that mean?" Glenn muttered in confusion as his head poke out of her pocket again.

"He wants me to choose between these two." Raina replied.

Glenn muttered, "Why not get her something more… simple and tame. Like that pink hairpin?"

"Unlucky." the mask replied.

Raina smiled, "Mr. Mask have been working here for a really long time and knows just about all of the items being sold here. Looks like he's not willing to recommend us that hairpin for some reason. So, let's just pick between these two. I'd like that one!"

She pointed to the cat ears on the table.

"Not yet." the mask replied bluntly.

"What does that mean?" Glenn asked Raina.

"Not choosing correctly means not receiving." the mask stated.

"Then, we have to pick the right one?" Glenn muttered in bewilderment.

"Hm," Raina frowned, "He's also telling us to choose between these two now…"

"Not saying you're wrong." the mask replied.

"Then, I'll take that one, then?" Raina said pointing to the flowers.

"Not too shabby." the mask stated as a large wooden hand appeared and picked it up gingerly, "Not a bad choice."

"Thanks!" Raina smiled as she took the flowers in hand.

"Is a simple errand really such an ordeal?" Glenn muttered in confusion.

"No hanging around. No shopping, then leave." the mask stated bluntly.

"Okay!" Raina smiled and bowed to the clerk before walking out.

* * *

Finally back out, Glenn breathed a sigh of relief, "I've never heard of a simple store as complicated as this!"

Raina giggled, "You'll understand Mr. Mask better when you visit more often. He's actually not bad."

As she walked down the street, she noticed the familiar windows and trees. Seeing this, Raina smiled wider, "It's been a really long time since I came by here."

"Raina?"

She looked up in surprise and saw a familiar figure walking in her direction on the same street.

"Julius!" Raina smiled wide as she rushed over to him.

"Good afternoon." He chuckled and patted her head, "Are you out on an errand? I see you have the cat with you. Are you buying supplies for it?"

"Julius knows about Silver?" Raina raised a brow.

"Well," Julius wore a small smile, "Professor Vania and Professor Ivan talked about the incident at the Dormitories' garden. They said that the student you found was holding onto a cat, but, when I used my magic, I couldn't find his home. It was really strange…"

He said with a curious stare at the cat. Raina petted the cat as she saw his fur standing on end, "Um, Julius. You're… making him really nervous."

"Oh." His eyes widen in surprise and hastily stepped back, "Sorry! A-anyway, they were saying that they should hand the cat to Professor Elbert since it seems to have some presence of magic around it, but the both of us recommended you instead."

"So it was you!" Raina gasped in surprise.

"You're interested in animals, correct?" Julius grinned, "You should start getting some experience while you're attending school."

"Th-Thank you very much!" Raina could hardly contain her smile as she heard this, "O-Oh! That reminds me. This morning, I was finally able to cast the light spell you showed me when I was little! The one that shows dream!"

"Ah, that one?" Julius raised a brow, "It wasn't that difficult if I remember correctly, but I'm glad to hear that you finally succeeded. Congratulations."

"Thanks!" she smiled.

* * *

Together, the two talked for a while. Julius showed her a nearby pet store where she was able to get the basic necessities for Silver before the two returned to campus once evening was close. The sunset painted the soft colors of Latium's buildings a soft tint of orange and dyed the sky like warm fire. When they entered school grounds again, Julius patted her head and smiled, "I've got things to do in the library, so this is as far as I go."

"Okay! I'll see you next time, then!" Raina giggled after trying to push away his hand.

Julius raised a brow and chuckled before waving his hand as he left for the school building. As I headed to the dormitories, Glenn spoke up, "Who was that, Raina?"

"His name is Julius." She smiled wide, "He's a close family friend and my babysitter when I was little."

"But, what business does he have at the school? Glenn muttered in confusion.

"He's a researcher here." Raina replied as they walked down the brick path, "Mills Crea isn't just a school. It also researches magic. They have their own building called the Black Tower. Student are forbidden from entering that tower too. Only researchers, like Julius, and school faculty can do that. That light magic Julius taught me. He created that just for me and my younger sibling when I was little."

"You have a younger sibling?" Glenn asked.

"Yup!" Raina giggled, "I don't really look like an older sister, huh. She's still a toddler and I'm usually the one taking care of her, but I heard that my grandparents would be coming over for the season, so they can take care of her while I'm at school."

"Is that so..." Glenn smiled.

"Yeah! She's only three, but she's really, really sweet and loves magic just as much as me and my mom does!" Raina said with a bright smile.

She turned to Silver with the heavy bundles in her hands. With the flowers wrapped in paper, Silver carried it in his mouth for her as they returned to the dorms.

When they returned, Sabrina still had not made it back as Raina began organizing some of Silver's new things. Yet, the moment she turned around, she heard Glenn yell.

"Put me down, Silvi-! Silver! Put me down!"

There was the familiar meowing victoriously with Glenn's tail between his teeth. Raina's eyes widen in surprise as she gasped and frowned, "Silver! You put him down this instant!"

As she glared firmly at the cat, the cat suddenly shuddered and Glenn slowly plopped to the floor softly. Raina breathed a small sigh of relief once she saw Glenn stand up on his hind legs and reached down to pet the cat who blinked at her before she picked up Glenn, "Are you all right?"

"Y-Yes." the mouse cleared his throat.

Needless to say, aside from the occasional mouse and cat situation, the two don't get into much trouble at least. Surprisingly, Sabrina also returned after dinner with yummy sweets she made with Cole. They were really good! She really wished that those days lasted for a lifetime.

* * *

It was the next day when Raina and Sabrina had gone to class together. Classes were still difficult, but she wrote a lot of notes and talked with a few of her classmates making it easier for her to understand. It was during the break hour in between class when Raina heard sniffling and looked around in confusion.

"Huh? Is someone crying?" She wondered aloud.

"But…" Sabrina frowned, "I don't hear anything. Shoot..."

As Sabrina began looking through her bag, Raina raised a brow, "Sabrina? Did you forget your wand again?"

"Yeah…" She looked to her nearly teary eyes as she said this, "What am I going to do?! It's important to have them with us at all times, but I always keep forgetting mine."

Raina grasped Sabrina's shoulders and said calmly, "Don't panic. The dorm isn't _that _far. Just hurry there then run back. You should still have some time. We can talk about this after the next class. I'll try and come up with an excuse for you being tardy."

"O-Okay." Sabrina nodded and quickly rushed off after handing her bag to Sabrina.

Once gone, Raina sighed.

"What's wrong?"

Raina looked down and saw Glenn looking up to her from the opening in the side of her bag. She answered with a look of concern, "I know that Sabrina forgets her stuff sometimes, but it's been happening a lot more often since last week…"

"Didn't she had it on her this morning?" Glenn whispered in confusion.

"She did, didn't she?" Raina raised a brow, "Strange, if she had it with her, then how did she lose it?"

"Maybe it's just her."

Surprised, Raina spun around and saw Livan standing there much to her surprise.

"Livan!" Raina smiled, "How are you feeling?"

"Better." Livan smiled back, "Though I'm still healing, the pain is gone. Mostly."

"Well, don't work too hard." Raina warned her with a nod.

"I know. Thanks for saving me that day." Livan chuckled nervously, "I heard from Professor Elbert that you're taking care of the cat for now?"

"Yup!" Raina smiled, "He's a bit mischievous but really smart too! I just finished getting his supplies together."

"I see. That's good." Livan nodded before he raised a brow, "Did you hear that?"

"Huh?" She raised a brow.

It was the sniffling noise again.

"It's that sniffling noise again…" She muttered in confusion and looked to Livan, "Let's go see where it's coming from."

He nodded as she began to follow the sound down the hall, yet it wasn't too far as she spotted pretty blond hair just around the corner.

"Elizabeth?" Raina said with a look of surprise as Alicia and her friends looked up with looks of worry.

As Cathy was patting the Elizabeth's back, the blond hair girl was quietly crying as she silently wiped away the tears quickly with the back of her palm like a child and the other hand tightly hugging her jewel box.

"What happened?" Livan said with a frown.

Alicia looked over with a troubled expression, surprisingly.

"She lost the little diamond earrings her sister gave her a long time ago." Alicia responded with a frown, "It's really important to her."

"Oh no!" Raina gasped, "That's awful…"

"I-It was in my box for just a few seconds…" Elizabeth stammered terribly upset.

"When was it last seen?" Livan questioned.

"I was trying it on in the courtyard with everyone." Elizabeth muttered, "B-But, I made sure to put it back as soon as we were done!"

"That's right!" Shelly nodded her head firmly, "We all saw her put it back."

"Then, it can't have gone far." Livan responded with a frown.

"B-But, we searched everywhere…" Alicia responded with a grimace, "Just where could it have gone?"

Elizabeth looked ready to cry when Cathy spoke up with a hesitant look, "Alicia, it's almost time for class to start."

Alicia looked distraught but nodded her head and patted Elizabeth's shoulder, "When class is over, let's come back to search again. Okay, Elly?"

The girl slowly nodded her head silently. Worried that her tear stain face would catch too much attention to her, Raina quickly took out her handkerchief and handed it to her. Seeing the disappear into another classroom, Livan sighed, "That's the fifth case today…"

"What do you mean?" Raina looked to him in confusion.

"You haven't heard? It's been happening since the start of the weekend." Livan said with a frown, "People have been losing their things left and right. They leave them there and their gone the next second. Just the other day, Kris seemed to have lost one of his test tubes during potion class."

It was then that his eyes widen in surprise, "Speaking of potion class, I need to be there soon too!"

Raina gasped, "I need to be at my magics class in the next couple of minutes too!"

Livan wore a small smile as he turned around, "Well, good luck!"

As he rushed off, Raina quickly began to hurried over to her classroom. She was going to be late!

Luckily, Sabrina wasn't one of the unlucky ones to have lost their things and Raina saw Elizabeth return to the dorm in more tears in the dining hall. In their dorm, Raina frowned and turned to Sabrina sitting on her bed with a textbook in hand, "Poor Elizabeth. It looks like she still didn't find it…"

"I heard what happened this afternoon." Sabrina said with a frown, "It's so sad. Those earrings are from her sister too."

"Who are those girls?" Glenn asked as he chewed on his small slice of pastry from the ice box Cole and Paul made for them.

"They're Alicia, Cathy, Shelly, and Elizabeth." Sabrina explained, "They're admirers of Kris, who's currently no. 2 of the school."

"You met Kris two days ago." Raina said, "He's the one who helped us carry Livan back inside."

"Ah, him?" Glenn nodded while resting his chin on his small paws, "A fan club sounds like trouble."

"It's not all that bad." Raina smiled, "They really admire him, but they're really good people!"

"And, that time they tried to trick you buying stuff from the store?" Glenn said folding his arms together.

"Huh?" Raina tilted her head and smiled, "But, I thought they liked it very much from the way they spoke."

Glenn froze as the cat couldn't stop making this really strange meow. Glenn sighed before clearing his throat, "Anyway, she said that the youngest one has a sister?"

"Yeah." Sabrina frowned, "Elizabeth comes from a well-off family and is the youngest child. Not many knew about her until recently, but I heard that she and her sister got along very well. However…"

"What's wrong?" Raina asked curiously.

"Her sister…" Sabrina hesitated, "was about to wed with another well-off family in a political marriage."

"Nothing special about that." Glenn said with a sigh, "It's common when those with higher status comes to the topic of marriage."

"Perhaps, but…" Sabrina shook her head and turned to Raina, "Raina, I heard that her sister is actually one of your parent's friends. I believe her name is Cynthia."

"Ms. Cynthia!" Raina's eyes widen in surprise, "You can't mean _that _Cynthia!"

"So you do know her." Glenn looked to Raina.

Raina nodded, "Cynthia is really, really nice since I was little. Her husband is the owner of a nice hotel and Julius would take me there sometimes. I didn't know Elizabeth was her younger sister, but now that you said it… Her blond hair and blue eyes…"

"Yeah." Sabrina nodded, "I was told by the reporter and one of her sister's best friends, Adele, that, when she heard about a political marriage, she was so sad, but the hotel owner suddenly confessed to her right here in the Dormitory's garden. They were both around our age, I heard. Then, she declared that she would become a Wizardess and live with the owner. There was a lot of drama after that. After that, her family suddenly brought out Elizabeth and said that she had poor health which was why nobody knew about her, but Elizabeth hasn't seen her sister since then."

"That's so sad…" Raina grimaced, "So, she hasn't seen Ms. Cynthia since then..."

"This hasn't been the first case." Glenn noted as he sat on the table, "Her sister was fortunate to escape that path, but it's possible that they would want Elizabeth to follow that path. This is what happens when you have higher status, Raina. To live, you would need to be in another family of higher standing too. If you were her, what would you do?"

"If I were her?" Raina was taken by surprise from the question as she thought for a bit before she smiled, "It'll be sad, but I have a dream I want to follow. I don't want to be stopped just for politics. I mean, being in a political marriage isn't going to make myself or those around me happy. It'll just be for the few individuals… I want to live my life the way I want, because you only have one life and I want to dedicate it on my dream. I know it won't be easy living on my own, but we all have hardships to overcome. My mom, my dad, and Ms. Cynthia and her husband are living proof of that. I don't know how difficult a political marriage is and probably won't, b-but I believe that Elizabeth would find her own path because she has everyone here too, just like Ms. Cynthia has my mom and their friends with her."

Glenn was quiet for a bit before Sabrina continued, "That earrings she was talking about was something Ms. Cynthia gave her sister when they last met which was years ago."

"Then, we have to find those earrings!" Raina responded firmly.

"Can we find them?" Glenn asked.

"I don't know, but we can't just leave her be either. We're her friends." Raina said to Glenn pleadingly, "And, we haven't even tried to look for them yet. How do we know that it's impossible without trying it ourselves?"

"Raina…" Glenn muttered as he stared at her before he breathed a long sigh and smiled, "All right, but do you know how to look for it?"

"It's a pair of diamond earrings right?" Raina asked Sabrina.

She nodded and gestured the size, "I only saw it once with Alicia and the others, but it was small and had a gold clasp around each one of the jewels."

"Okay." Raina nodded, "I remember Livan said that this wasn't the first time these types of theft occurred. I'll try asking around for a bit and see what I can find. If it's something this unusual, then it must've already started spreading rumors."

"Good idea." Sabrina nodded.

"But first…" Sabrina closed her book with a wide smile, "Let's get to bed. We have class tomorrow too, you know. So you can put your search till tomorrow."

"Okay…" Raina forced a small awkward chuckle.

* * *

That night, as Raina fell asleep hugging Silver off his pillow next to hers, she thought she heard Glenn open the cardboard door of his small room and crawl on the table. She wondered if he needed to use Silver's litter box, but hadn't realized that the litter box was on the ground in the corner of the room. If she did…

If only she did, she could've heard what he had been up to.

_If only… _

_If only she did so…_


	5. Chapter 5: The Black Feather

The Black Feather

As Raina asked around for the last couple of days, she learned that many items have been lost from the students and staff. Pen, glass bottles, glasses, nails, and so on. One day, she had made it to the lake and noticed some small birds to which she smiled upon seeing it land on her bags. Seeing this, watched it quietly till it saw her before placing her whistle on her lips and blew. The bird settled down on her bag and huddled silently before closing its eyes. It was asleep. She smiled when she saw this and blew again. Its eyes open and blinked before chirping and joined its other friends in the trees. It was another day of school. A couple of days had passed since the search began. Now, she was on a break from class. It was then that she heard footsteps and looked up. It was Professor Hannes!

"Good morning, Professor Hannes!" Raina smiled with a curt bow.

"Good morning." He nodded with a wide smile, "What are you doing right now?"

"I'm just trying to train some little bird." She replied with a smile, "I can't really do much, though…"

"Is that so?" Professor Hannes smiled, "You just need more practice then."

"Yeah." Raina nodded in agreement, "But, animals and beasts aren't allowed in the dorms without permission. So, I'll just have to settle with little birds and mice outside."

Hannes thought for a bit before he smiled, "Well, what if I can solve that for you?"

"Huh? How?" Raina thought quietly in confusion.

Professor Hannes smiled wider and said, "Just give me a few months time. Maybe if you can complete your school year here, I can show you this little surprise."

Before she could say anything, Hannes had already turned around and left the lake leaving her by herself. She looked to him in confusion as his feather hat slowly vanished in the distance. What a strange guy. As she thought this, he couldn't help but feel a little unsettle. What did he meant by surprise?

* * *

Raina was in the library by the end of class. As she looked through the book Fay had given her, she heard something took a small tumble and looked up to see Kris picking up a few books while a few others looked dangerously ready to fall. Raina raised a brow, but got up from her seat and stuffed the bookmark in her book as she walked over. Glancing around, she was surprised to see that Alicia and the other girls weren't around. Normally, they'd be around Kris as often as they could, though there _are _times they weren't around. Still, they're usually about willing to give a hand at least. She picked up a couple of the books fom the ground and handed it to him, "Here."

"Thank you." he muttered and took the book in hand.

It was then that she remembered the incident and asked, "Um, I heard that you lost something recently."

"You mean, a simple test tube." Kris grumbled, "Livan loves to make a commotion out of everything…"

"That's not what I meant!" Raina quickly noted with a raised brow, "It's just that everyone has been losing something qute often recently."

"I don't know what you're after." Kris glanced over to her with a frown. .

"Could you tell me how it happened?"

"I was measuring the solutions and needed some more, so I turned around to get it." Kris muttered, "When I turned around, the test tube of liquid gold vanished."

"L-Liquid gold?!" She tried to imagine gold melted into liquid, "But won't that harden in a cool environment?"

Still, he continued with a sigh, "Liquid gold is difficult to obtain and that was something the professor gave and, no. It shouldn't melt at room temperature. That's what real liquid gold should be. I can't just go ask them for another one. Thanks to that, my entire experiment is at a standstill. I need it partly to conduct electricity for the experiment. So, without it is impossible to do."

"That does sound like a problem." Raina thought for a bit despit the confusing words he brought up, "Wait…"

She suddenly grabbed her bag and turned to him as she rushed out the door, "Thanks for the info, Kris! I'll let you know if I find anything."

Back in the dorm, she quickly dug through her notebooks before pulling out a new notebook Professor Elbert had given him and quickly scribbled onto the notebooks.

* * *

The next day, she was heading to the lake once more with Glenn in tow this time when she noticed Professor Elbert looking rather troubled with a box in hand. The weather was great and classes went by unusually well today, so it was unusual to see her professor acting like this.

"Isn't that one of your professors?" Glenn whispered from her bag.

She raised a brow and nodded, "Yeah. It's a little strange to see him in these parts of the school at this time. I wonder what's wrong?"

She walked over calling out to him, "Hi, Professor Elbert! Is something the matter? You look like you're having some trouble."

The professor looked to her in surprise, "Raina!"

He nodded, "There is something I must deliver, but I was told that one of the new professors needed a substitue for a class."

He sighed shaking his head, "If only Professor Vania had asked me sooner for once…"

"Yeah…" Raina grimaced, "That sounds like a trouble."

Since Professor Elbert is so nice, Professor Vania tends to take advantage of his kindness at times. In truth, she feel a little sorry for him. Concerned, she said, "Professor, do you have to deliver it in a hurry? If so, maybe I can do it for you?"

"But what about your classes?" The professor asked with a raised brow.

"I'm doing self-study this morning in the library anyway." She replied, "My Ancient Magic Professor is busy with some sort of research today and said we're on our own."

"Again?" Professor Elbert said with a look of surprise.

The professor at Mills Crea are all so unique. Sometimes, some of them prioritize their own research over the teaching of classes. We students are all pretty used to it and such professors teach us unique classes which no other school can offer that it doesn't bother anyone here. Professor Elbert sighed and nodded his head, "I see. That would certainly help me a lot. Are you sure you're fine with it?"

"Of course!" She smiled, "Please leave it to me!"

"Thank you, Raina." He said as he handed her the cardboard box, "Please, see that it gets delivered."

Professor Elbert handed her a note of the address and the permission to leave school grounds. She recognized the address pretty easily since her father often goes there sometimes. She smiled and nodded, "I'll be on my way, then! Good luck with your class, professor!"

He wore a complicated smile and nodded, "Yes, thank you."

Waving her hand goodbye to the professor, she began to make her way towards the gate to the city on her own. The poupee easily gives her passage and she thanks it before hurrying to the plaza. As she did so, Glenn muttered, "Is it necessary to help the professor? Why can't he just deliver it tomorrow?"

"I think this is for a potion shop that's why." She replied with a small smile, "Some of the things in here can be perishable by the next day if not handed soon."

As she took a step into the plaza, a girl called out to her, "You, over there! Excuse me!"

She turned and saw a strange chestnut hair girl with pigtails hurrying over to her, "Yes? What can I do for you?"

"Y-You like fortune-telling, right? Do you know where I can find the With Who Sees The Future?" she stammered nervously.

"Huh?" Raina raised a brow, "Who's the Witch Who Sees The Future?"

"What, you don't know?" Her eyes widen in surprise, "She's the incredibly famous fortune-teller who's been spotted in this Magical City of Latium! They say her name is Valrohona and that her fortunes have never been wrong!"

"Wow! Seriously?" Raina looked at her with bewilderment, "That's pretty amazing!"

"Right?" She nodded, "So many people seek her and her fortunes that she wanders around and is nearly impossible to find! I've heard the king of some country had even given a reward for her location. Isn't that something?!"

"That's crazy!"

"I've been hoping to hear my fortune from her, but I can't find Valrohona no matter how hard I look." the girl shook her head in disappointment, "If you want to hear your fortune, she's the one to find! So, I'm going to keep looking! See ya!"

"Bye bye!" She called out with her hands heavy with the box.

"The Witch Who Sees The Future?" Glenn muttered in confusion, "I've never heard of that before."

"Me neither. I wonder how come I've never heard of it till now?" Raina muttered in confusion, "There are astrology classes at school and one of my mom's closest friend is even from an esteemed family of astrologers. But, my parents told me that official astrologers and fortune-tellers are rather different in what they do."

There was a moment of silence as she ponders about seeing such a person.

"Do you want to find her too?" Glenn muttered.

"I do!" She smiled nervously, "But, I have class later, so perhaps another time. Still, the fortune-telling which has never been wrong… I'd totally want to hear it! Ack! No distractions! L-Let's look into it next time, Glenn."

She thought she heard he sigh in exasperation, but she put that aside and tried to focus instead. When she was done, she quickly decided to take a shortcut back to class.

"Hm…" She looked about curiously, "I know that it should be close to it by now according to that map."

"I thought so!" Glenn scolded, "This is why I said that we should take the normal route back rather than take a break! You just had to get attracted by the sweets..."

As he groaned, Raina wore a small smile and sighed, "S-Sorry…"

It was then that they heard a soft giggle and turned around to see a woman with a peculiar presence and wore a dark navy blue dress and veil with white patterns.

"Um…" She called out to the woman.

"Are you a lover of sweets, young leaf?"

"Huh?" She looked up in confusion, "Well… I do love sweets and pastries…"

"Then, follow me." the woman said as she turned around.

"What?" Raina looked to her in bewilderment but the woman promptly walks away.

She said to follow her, didn't she?

"Raina, let's go back to school." Glenn said firmly, "She is a stranger and following her is a bad idea. Your parents taught you this, didn't they?"

"B-But…" she looked up to see the woman slowly lost amongst the crowd of people.

There was a moment of silence as Glenn sighed, "Fine… but I'm warning you. If we get into trouble, there's only so much I can do."

"Y-Yes!" She smiled wide and hurried after the woman, "W-Wait for me!"

She hurried after the woman.

They walked for a while as Raina called out, "Um, where are you taking me? I know I'm following you, but I should probably be heading back to school soon…"

"If you return, it will be all for nothing." the woman replied, "You rush to a meeting where there is none."

"What?" She looked to her in confusion.

"You will find that following his stranger to have sweet snakcks and tea is better use of your time. Now come, inside." She said stopping before a house.

"O-Okay. After you…" Raina responded before having recalled something, "Wait, hold on!"

Yet, she had already taken Raina's invitation and entered the building and she finds herself getting dragged right into the woman's pace. M-Maybe if she gets this done fast enough, she can return to school in time for her class? But she never thought there'd be a house this deep in Latium. Normally, people visit Latium often so there's many hotels and houses, but the majority of them face the main street, like her parents' house. Yet, this one seems significantly more aged tha others. Here goes nothing…

Upon entering, she sees a fireplace with plates on stands ontop, a painting of a dragon, and a set of table and chairs. The woman goes to the other table and takes a plate before placing a small cake ontop of it. She looked up to Raina and smiled, "What's the matter? Feel free to eat. You said you love sweets snacks, didn't you?"

"I-I did, but…"

There was a steaming cup of tea and the cake looked quite tempting. Raina looked to her curiously, "Uh, aren't you going to have any?"

"I don't like sweets very much. I don't eat anything doesn't go along with alcohol." She replied with a smirk, "But there were gifted to me so I'm reluctant to toss them. You get to be my garbage disposal."

For someone as mystical as she appears, she really has a way with words, but she didn't felt as offended. Instead, the woman sounded a little more humorous than mean.

"Okay. If you say so." Raina replied hesitantly.

Since she was here, she might as well. She took a seat on the table as the woman handed her the plate of cute cake.

"Raina!"

But it was already too late. She had already taken a bite of the cake with her fork.

"That's good!" She said with a look of surprise.

"Is it? Good for you." the woman smiled with a smile, "The little mouse does not need to worry. My interest is not to take you for myself."

"Huh?" Raina looked to her in surprise.

Hearing this, Raina soon noticed her taking out a small piece of steak and bread from other table as well before placing it down next to Raina and sitting down across from them.

"It has been a while since you last had a proper meal. Had you not, little mouse?" the woman said with a smile, "Do not worry. My name is Valrohona. Tell me, what is yours?"

"I'm Raina…" She responded curiously before her eyes widen in surprise, "Isn't Valrohona…"

The woman smiles pleasantly, "You may know me by my nickname. I'm the Witch Who Sees the Future."

She swallowed the entire forkful of cake without chewing. What a waste that was!

"Then, you're the fortune teller whose fotunes are never wrong…" Glenn said as he jumped onto the table.

"Indeed, Little mouse." Valrohona said with a nod, "What is your name?"

The mouse hesitated, "Glenn. That's… what they call me."

The woman smiled wider, "It seems the fate you carry is one not many carry, Raina. A strong, but most unusual fate…"

She smiled wider and continued, "It is rare for someone to catch my attention. You ensure my time in this city will not be dull."

"Th-Thank you! I think?" She responded in confusion as she tried to decipher her comment while eating the cake.

The woman watches her in what looks to be a good mood, but it's difficult to tell with her veil.

"My eyes sees the future," Valrohona responded firmly, "hence my nickname. I do not reveal them so easily."

"So, that's why…" Raina responded with a nod before her eyes widen in surprise, "Wait! I never said anything!"

Valrohona laughed, "Enough is shown on your face. Like your mother, your heart is easier to read than the stars."

Though she gets the feeling that the woman enjoys poking little fun at her, her words caught her attention, "You know my mother?"

The woman smirked, "I do… and I do not."

Huh? But, by that time, Raina should've known that the Witch Who Sees the Future must've known it the moment she set her eyes on her.

They spent the afternoon talking much about her. Apparently, she had returned to Latium to visit a couple of old friends. She was very friendly, open, and rather entertaining.

"If I may," Raina asked, "why do you hide yourself from so many?"

"My fortune I give only to those in dire need." Valrohona stated firmly despite her smirk, "I will not fortell just anything. I had intended to see what had become of the child of another young leaf I met nearly a decade ago and see her child's fortune for fun as I had for her, but… it would seem I must foretell yours."

"My fortune?" she stated with a look of confusion.

"A vessel you may be." Valrohona said, "Young leaf, the Innocent Maiden, it interests me to see what color this colorless girl shall take and become to the future."

Raina looked to her in confusion as she continued, "Yes… To understand herself. To see her capabilities better. To know love. To watch her color change and blossom will be a treat for me."

"Understand… Capabilities… a-and L-Love?!"

She heard Glenn snort and gave him a small glare.

"Your life is ripe with relationships. Whether these turn into love or friendship requires effor on your part." Valrohona responded firmly despite the awkward humor, "I can offer you my help, but it is you who deciides what to do with what I say."

"I don't get it." Raina responded wth a look of confusiion, "Are you saying you can give me hints on how to get along with people and get stronger?"

Valrohona silently nods her head with a smile, "You may come on the weekend, but come only alone. I do not like being busy, so tell no one of me and visit with none other than your little friends. I do not mind, but they must be little."

"O-Okay!" she nodded her head, "I-I'll keep it a secret!"

Raina finished her cup of tea and placed it next to her empty plate before she nodded and stood from her seat, "Thanks for the meal! I think I better be heading back to school now. I'm excited to hear about that fortune of mine, but I'm even happier I got to talkt to you, Valrohona."

The woman smiled wide, "Until we meet again. I'll be waiting for your return. Until then, take this for your little friend."

"Yes!" she smiled back as she took a box handed to her, "Thanks! I'm sure I'll be back!"

Glenn left his empty plate behind and crawled into her bag as they left.

She let out a long sigh after leaving the house behind, "What a mysterious person. I wonder if all fortune-tellers are like her. Everyone word she says is like a piece of a puzzle to put together. I can't wait to come and visit her on the weekend! Right, Glenn?"

Glenn didn't respond much to her confusion, "Glenn?"

She peered down to the bag causing the mouse to look up in surprise, "Huh?! O-Oh, yes! First, let's hurry back to your school. You still have class remember?"

"Right!" She nodded.

When she made it back in time for class, she spoke with another student when her eyes widen in surprise, "What? Magical Mechanics class is canceled?"

The girl classmate nodded, "That's right. It would seem the professor is busy with his experiment too."

"I-I see. Thanks for letting me know." She waved as the student left to their next class.

"So, class is canceled." She muttered quietly to herself.

Glenn whispered, "Didn't that Valrohona witch also said something similar? To rush to a meeting where there is none. She must've know from the start and brought you to her home."

"Wow!" Raina gasped in awe, "She really is the Witch Who Sees the Future! I can't wait to go and hear my fortune even more!"

Glenn shook his head with a sigh.

* * *

With her search coming to another dead end, Raina decided to get a breather and stretched out toward the sun loosening up her stiff body in the school's yard.

"What a wonderful weather!" Raina smiled, "Looks like coming here to take a little break was a good idea, after all!"

"I surprised by the lack of people here today." Glenn said curiously, "But don't forget you have to review for your potions class today. I still don't understand how you can mess up so badly when the lesson was to just make the plant turn back to its original color, of all things."

"Ah, right…" She grumbled, "How could I have know that I wasn't suppose to boil it in the beaker?!"

"Cause it was in your text book." Glenn muttered as he forcefully dragged out the text book from her back and nearly out of breath, "P-Page 221. It stated that flesh contained in… those things can't be mixed with extracts from any part of the plants. They're used for medicine, sure, but not to cure plants. It either burns them or kills them. You did neither, but somehow made it grown into an insane size! If the Professor hadn't stepped in the entire class would've been consumed alive..."

She sighed and took up the book, "I guess you're right…"

Opening it to the page, she saw the texts stated nearly just that and stuck a small piece of paper inside, "Guess, I'll have to take note of that too…"

She put the book away and picked up her bag as she strolled through the yard till she noticed the statue Ken had talked about.

"That reminds me…" She walked over to the statue curiously, "This statue…"

"Wasn't there are rumor about this statue talking?" Glenn muttered curiously.

"You overheard our conversation?" Raina looked to her curiously.

"I was there the whole time before I woke up." Glenn said.

"He said it was only a rumor, but I'd like to think it could talk." Raina said looking up to the statue.

As she stared at the statue, she recalled the lessons she learned regarding the history of their school and the start of magic in humans. One of the founders of Mills Crea and leader of the Ancients, he built the start of it with a human they trust. If anything, she wished that she could thank him for everything he did for them to bring where they are now. Might as well do so, she thought with a smile and began, "Thank you so much for making this wonderful school for us. Everyday here is so much fun. I'm truly grateful. I'm very glad to have came to this school!"

Glenn sighed, "Raina, you realized that you're talking to a statue."

"Of course he can't hear me." She smiled wider, "There's no way, but I'd like to thank him."

"So, your voice reaches me, but my voice does not reach you?"

She nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard this and looked up quickly.

"Wh-What?!" She muttered curiously with wide eyes.

"Can you hear me, Innocent Maiden?" voices came from the statue, "It's been a short while since I last felt a presence like yours. Interesting."

"I-Innocent maiden?" Raina raised a brow in bewilderment, "C-Can you hear that, Glenn? Or was it just my imagination? It was, right?"

"What are you saying?" Glenn stated almost completely bewildered and deep concern.

The statue suddenly chuckled, "It seems you can as well. There are not many who can hear my voice. I'm glad you are able to."

"Um… is this real?" Raina said nervously, "Are you… Fata Molgana?"

"A man once dead can't be brought back to life, no matter how hard we try." Glenn muttered with a scowl, "There must be some kind of magic going on here."

"Perhaps." the statue stated, "You may call me Fata Molgana. Yet, what little mouse say is true. Fata Molgana himself is no longer of this world, but I have not bee given a name other than that."

"So, you're not Fata Molgana?" Raina looked to him curiously only to be met back with silence, "U-Understood! I'll call you Fata Molgana! I'm very happy to be able to talk to you, too! I'm Raina!"

"Thank you, Raina." the statue responded.

She isn't sure if that was the real Fata Molgana or another person, but she's never been able to talk to a statue before. So, it's really exciting!

"I always reach out my voice to people, but there are few it ever manages to reach." the statue stated, "I believe that it cannot reach those who think it impossible to be able to converse with a statue."

"So, that's why." She noted looking down to Glenn, "Then, Glenn can't hear you because he doesn't believe that the statue could speak…"

Glenn looked to her with a look of confusion, "Not being able to hear because I don't believe it? If that's the case…"

"You possess a very strange magical power, Raina. One I've never seen before. I've saw a human with no magical element recently before she retained all of the magical elements in her."

"It does talk…" Glenn muttered in disbelief.

However, Raina's attention was on something else, "That sounds like my mother!"

"Was her name Lulu by any chance?" Fata Molgana questioned as she nodded, "Haha… that would explain your optimism, yet… this magic… is not like that of an Innocent Maiden. Not Lulu... I wonder why…"

As he stated this, she wondered, "Is it because my magic is more wild than hers?"

The statue was quiet before it said, "Are you ashamed of your magic? There is nothing to be ashamed of. I think you should be proud of your unique magical power."

"But…" She frowned, "My magic keeps failing. Unless, I study more and more, I won't be able to become a wizardess."

"Of course your studies are important." the statue said, "However, 'nothing' can either mean 'all' or something entirely new. In other words, f you put enough effort, you'll be able to attain everything or something we've never seen before."

"Attain everything or… something entirely new?" she muttered in confusion.

"The path of an innocent is a long path that never ends. It was also the path that those you call the Ancients followed. However, Raina, you hold something different. Something… new." Molgana stated with a tone she thought could be excitement, "Everything depends on you. If you keep on striving, you shall be able to create a path others can follow."

She couldn't quite understand it, but she felt that those words held a really deep meaning and it makes her think that she really can do it! She smiled wide, "Yes, I'll give it everything I got!"

The statue didn't respond to her, but, if she thought about it, she could almost see a smile on his face. She waved her goodbye before walking away from the statue.

"It really talked…" Glenn said almost dizzily, "I-I need a break…"

As he crawled back into her back, she grinned, "It was probably a little much for you, huh? I'll see you in a bit, then."

She didn't feel as though there was any special meaning behind it, but she felt that it would be better to keep this a secret. Certainly, nobody else would believe her if she told them, after all. Still, she hoped that she could speak with him again. As she thought this, she began to leave the courtyard.

* * *

The next couple of days later, she called Livan and Kris to meet her in the Main Hall with Silver. It was the seventh day, so they had the professor's permssion to leave the school grounds ahead of time.

"Is there a reason you need to call the two of us here?" Livan grumbled.

"I would like to know the meaning behind this too." Kris grumbled as he glared at Livan.

"Sorry, Livan. Sorry, Kris." Raina apologized, "But I really want to get to the bottom of this mystery with the stolen items. It's been happening more frequently. If this keeps going on, it'll be more than just a precious item stolen again. Elizabeth still..."

Having heard her explanations, Kris muttered, "Is that how it is…"

Livan sighed, "I guess we don't really have much better things to do."

"Thank you!" She smiled wider.

"So where do we start?" Livan began as he petted Silver's head.

"There must've been something left behind when the theft occurred." Raina said firmly.

"So search for clues…" Kris said with a frown, "I hadn't thought of that before…"

"Probably because you hadn't thought of pursuing for it, like usual." Livan noted.

"I did." Kris glared at him.

"Guys!" Raina called out to them, "Please?"

Hearing this, Livan sighed for the umpteenth time and nodded, "Fine."

"Let's start with the Lab." Kris said.

"Great!" Raina said with a smile.

* * *

When they arrived at the lab, they searched for clues for a while when Raina took a deep breath and stood up from the ground, "Nothing here…"

She looked back and saw Livan and Kris shaking their heads after checking the tables when something caught her attention, "Livan? What's that in your hands?"

"This?" He raised the black feather, "It's just what it is. A feather."

"Can I take a look at that?" She asked before he nodded and handed it to her.

She raised a brow after seeing the size of the feather and turned to Kris, "Um, Kris? The staff and students makes sure that this room is always clean for research right?"

Kris nodded, "It's dangerous if chemicals and materials are left around hazardously and any left over residue from a previous experiment can change the outcome of the next, so the room always has to be thoroughly clean."

The magics laborartory, as she calls it, was usually clean, but also really creepy, somehow it didn't surprise her that Kris finds this of the most interest next to the library. Aside from chemicals were strange patterns and materials. Large orbs of different colors hung from the ceiling in glass containers and test tubes were neatly stacked away on shelves. Everything was neat and tidy if they were items or could be cleaned. It was vital when making potions too, after all. So, she believed that the room would also have to be spotless as possible.

"Where did you find this feather?" she asked Livan.

"Next to that large box." He said pointing to the wooden box hidden under the table.

Kris's eyes widen in surprise, "That's the box that I use to store my experiment."

"Since when was it there?" She asked Kris.

"Probably just before the theft occurred. I was putting the materials away so I could take more equipments from the shelves for the next day." He replied.

Raina stared at the large feather.

"It's big…" Livan noted curiously as Silver began batting at it.

"Big…" Raina stared at the feather, "And long feather."

"Could that really be a clue?" Kris said with a raised brow, "I mean, there are feathers in a lot of places, right? Unless, somebody who took it also had the feather, but I was the only person present during that time. Gold Liquid is a valuable ingredient. If they wanted to steal it, they would have to come through the windows. It was opened the whole time."

She frowned and said, "I think you're right. You were definitely the only person there. Then… Can I borrow a ruler?"

"Okay." Livan looked around but Kris handed her the ruler.

"Thanks." She said and began measuring the feather.

"Raina?" Livan called out to her curiously.

"Just double-checking something." she replied, "Thirty-five inches…"

She took a deep breath in amazement as the dots begin to line up.

"A Raven?"

They looked to her in surprise as she nodded, "Aside from Kris's gold liquid, a pair of earrings and pen was stolen. Glass bottles and nails aren't of any value either, but students have also been loing those too. The characteristic of gold liquid is that they are lusterous even in liquid form, correct?"

"That's right." Kris nodded.

"Ravens have a tendency to take anything shiny as treasures. Nails and glass bottles are no different. Moreover, there are no patterns on this feather. I'd have mistaken this for a crow, but a tail feather this big would've been quite a large crow. We're talking about a raven." She took a deep breath and continued, "A very large one. Normal raven tail feather are no more than twenty six inches long. This is almost twice as long as that."

"So, there's ravens in this school too." Kris said with a frown, "I should've kept the windows closed."

"Ravens will nest in high places such as tall branches and cliffs. The back of Latium are mountains, so one must've descended from there." she explained, "I've never seen one but in books, but I've seen their feathers before to know."

"That's amazing, Raina." Livan said in awe, "You're very knowledgeable about this."

She smiled nervously with a nod, "My grandfather has a collection of feathers passed down, so he told me. I was also interested in animals for a long time anyway. But, the problem is how do we catch it."

Kris sighed, "Know that we know what we're dealing with. Taking care of it is much easier."

"Huh?" she looked to them in confusion.

"That's right." Livan smiled, "Wait right here. I'll go get something."

As he rushed out of the classroom, Kris walked over to the window and opened it. Curious, she walked over to him, "What are you doing?"

"Look over here." he said pointing to the window sill where the dust from outside accumlated and little marks were wiped off, "It would seem your little friend have been here often?"

Her eyes widen as she examined the window, "Prints that big must've been the Raven. I can see small prints must've been the blue jays and other smaller birds."

"That's all I need to know." he smirked and began cleaning things off the table.

"What are you doing?" she asked again feeling rather isolated.

"You still can't tell?" Kris sighed as he shook his head, "I don't know what goes in your head…"

He looked to her and frowned, "Help me put away anything that shines and you'll see after the idiot gets back."

"O-Okay!"

She rushes over and gives him a hand after putting the cat down.

* * *

Hours pass by when she finally saw it. A giant black bird easily perches on the window sill before hoping into the room. Moments later, it returns and takes flight soaring through the skies.

"After it!" Kris shouted.

"_Lena Lumen_!" Livan called out, "_Light us a path!_"

As he said this, light suddenly shined and flew up into the sky like a long string of yarn!

"That's amazing…" she managed as they began running after the bird.

They raced past the dormitories and to the lake where they found the bird resting in its nest.

"It should be there." She said.

"Okay!" Livan grinned and began climbing the tree.

She gasped, "Wait!"

However, as he did, the bird jumped off its nest and dove at Livan who tried to brace himself against it. She grimaced and threw on two earplugs in the cat's ears before throwing it to Kris, "Please hold onto him!"

"W-Wha-?!"

Before he could respond, she rushed out and placed her whistle on her lips.

"Hey! Over here!" She shouted waving her arms as the bird turned to her direction and dove at her.

With pounding heart beats, she took a deep breath calming herself before she began. The brilliant sound rippled through the air as the bird wobbled in midair. She frowned and blew into it again before it suddenly stopped flapping. She threw herself to the black bundle and had barely caught it in her arms. It was a very giant Raven, all right. Nearly as big as an eagle!

"I found it!" Livan called out as he began taking a few things from its nest.

When he got down, he rushed over to her with wide eyes, "What happened to the bird?"

"It's asleep." she replied with a smile and the whistle in her mouth.

"What did you do?" Kris questioned as he stared hard at her almost harshly.

"I-I just tamed it." She replied with a look of surprise, "I can't just tell it to fly away when it's that determined to protect it. The best I could do was have it fall asleep. If it did that, I could catch it when it dives."

"That's amazing…" Livan said with a look of surprise.

"What you guys did was amazing." She corrected with a smile and blush, "I couldn't have figured out how to catch it if you two hadn't jumped it with Livan's creation and Kris's observation."

Kris frowned, "As amazing as it was, you could've put yourself in danger!"

She jumped as he shouted.

"Hey," Livan scowled, "Because she jumped in when she did, we were able to stop the bird without harming it."

"But, you also jumped in without a second thought." Kris glared at him, "If she failed, it wouldn't just been you that got hurt."

As the tension suddenly escalated, Silver hissed and his fur stood on his back before jumping down and lept onto Raina's shoulder nuzzling her cheek with his. It became more comforting admist the heavy tension. With a sigh, Kris shook his head, "Forget it… we finished what we came here to do."

"Yeah…" Livan grumbled before handing him the test tube of gold liquid.

He took the test tube and walked away grumbling as he did so. His long brown hair tied into his signature poinytail seemed to trail behind him against the fading light of the setting sun. When Kris disappeared, Livan turned to her and petted her head with a firm smile, "It's fine. That idiot is always in a sour mood. You did great today. Thank you for saving me again."

"Y-You're welcome." She replied slowly recovering herself from the shock next to Silver's purrs.

He handed her the diamond earrings and escorted her back to the dorm. When they returned, she was surprised to see Fay walking by and greeted him with a smile. Surprisingly, he handed her the pink box that had once held the tart.

"Thank you for the tarts." He said before turning around and walking away before she could respond.

"Isn't that Fay?" Livan said with a look of surprise.

"Yeah. I guess he liked my thank you gifts." she assumed with a wide smile.

"Oh." Livan grimaced, "That's right…"

"Livan?" She glanced over to him curiously, "Is something wrong?"

"Huh? Oh, nope! It's nothing." he replied with a thin smile, "Let's get back to our rooms and rest up. You still need to tell Professor Elbert about the raven."

"Right…" She nodded.

Since she wanted it to remain at peace, she left the bird back in its nest as if nothing had happened before giving it the signal to wake up, which the two were already meters away and out of sight by then. Perhaps, the professors could figure out what to do about it.

* * *

As soon as she arrived back to her room, Glenn gave her some more scolding having been there with her during the adventure in the pouch. Apparently, she had been reckless as Kris had said and was forced to promise not to do take better approach in the future. Hearing his scolding reminded her much of the times her father would scold her and it was also somewhat similar to when Kris did it too. He must really care about them to have scolded them like that. She felt the need to apologize and thank him for his concerns.

That night, she immediately went to see Alicia and the others to return Elizabeth her earrings. The girl was overjoyed beyond relief and thanked her before handing her what looks like a pretty silver bracelet intricately designed with flower shapes. It was so pretty that she wanted to thank her. Thankfully, she has some ingredients she stored in the ice box for next times use. It was her only idea of repayment. As Ms. Martha told her once, 'Sweets are the best form of gifts for any reasons!' Not long after dinner, she also reported the Raven problem to Professor Elbert that night who promised to do something about that the next day, but she just told him that he didn't really needed to promise it since she knew that he was dedicated to helping students as the professor.

* * *

When the next day came around, she was surprised to learn that the bird was gone and the professor couldn't find it anywhere aside from the nest it sat in. Raina was stumped when she heard this, but it was probably for the better after what happened last night. That day, Glenn stayed at the dorm with Silver while Sabrina and Raina left for school. She was surprised when she met up with Lucas at the door of the school as he opened it up for them. As they walked through the halls, Sabrina brought up an interesting topic.

"Huh? The dracargoes are running late?" Raina said with a hum, "Now that you said it, I normally see them set out by the time we get to school."

Sabrina nodded, "Normally, I'd use their departure time to tell if I was late to class or not."

"Interesting." Lucas noted with a nod, "I had a package delivered to my elder brother, but he didn't received it till the next day too. Maybe something has happened to the dragues? Their schedule is said to be the same so it can't be the company."

Dragues flies in pairs. Often a male and a female. The responsibility of carrying cargoes are very important and it weighs on them which they dutifully take on willingly with pride. They're a little like dragons, but not the same as them. Unlike dragons, they lack the independent nature and the ability for human speech. Still, they are very intelligent and can be quite stubborn. Unless given proper treatment, no one could make them do anything they don't want to do, according to her mother.

"Maybe their throwing a strike." Lucas said with a mischevious grin, "Like better working rights."

"I'm pretty sure the majority of that was solved after the initial start of the work." Raina said with a small smile.

"Oh? And, how did you know that?" Lucas asked with a raised brow and a wider smirk.

"A-A guess! Yeah…" She stammered nervously as she tried to fight back the heat rising on her face. There was absolutely now way she could tell that she actually researched the dragues and their work out of concern for them as a child. She had no clue before then after all. She was only ten, okay?!

As she thought this, Lucas shrugged, "Well, until the problem is solved, all the shipments and passage will be held back for a while."

"No way…" Sabrina muttered, "I just sent my parents a letter this morning. First missing items and now this. Why does so many things happen in Mills Crea all the time?"

"It's Mills Crea." Raina said with a small smile, "If it was so quiet, it would actually be a little boring on some days, I guess."

"Right?" Lucas smiled wide, "Anyway, great job with the mystery of the missing items. Professor Elbert had just finished handing out all the items, the three of you brought back, to their rightful owners."

"Thanks!" Raina smiled, "I only found the culprit, though. It was Kris and Livan who caught it."

Sabrina giggled, "Still, what the three of you did was amazing. But, be careful not to get scolded again."

"Oh? How did that happen?" Lucas raised a brow.

"Oh, uh…" Raina stammered, "Y-You see… Professor Hannes wasn't too happy to hear that I nearly put myself in danger when I tried to stop the bird from attacking!"

"Professor Hannes?" Sabrina raised a brow, "That's one of the new professors, right?"

"Yeah." Raina replied with a nod.

"I see." Lucas smiled, "I can't wait to see what he's like then. Hopefully, he's a lot like Professor Elbert."

"You just like to see whenever something funny happens to him." Sabrina said with a glare, "Don't you know that's rude?"

"Not really." Lucas smirked, "It's not _that_ bad. I mean, can you help it when he always trips and hits head head on something? No, right?"

"Now that's just mean." Raina frowned, "Just because you want to laugh, doesn't mean you should. When that happens to mean and I accidently laugh, I make sure to apologize right away."

"So, I should just stand up and shout sorry to the Professor whenever I laugh?" Lucas said obviously feigning innocent curiousity.

"That's not what I meant!" Raina frowned deeper, "You clearly understand what I'm talking about too!"

"Do I?" Lucas grinned.

Sabrina heaved a sigh as Raina continued to argue with Lucas till they reached their classroom. As per usual, today's weather was great, but the day could've been better if Lucas wasn't always teasing her.


End file.
